Typically, a Toad user spends most time in either the Editor or the Schema Browser.
Anything (really anything?) that is possible with SQL*Plus can also done in the editor.
F9 executes a single SQL statement.
ctrl+enter executes an «embedded» SQL statement (for example in PL/SQL code).
Statements that are executed with F9 are recorded and can be «replayed» with F8.
Alt+Arrow Up/Down allows to cycle through the statements in the recorded buffer.
It's possible to name SQL statements. Named SQL statements are displayed with ctrl+n.
Code insight completes identifiers by pressing ctrl+period.
By default, the expansion of public synonym names is disabled.
The time until expansion kicks in can be adjusted.
F4 describes the object whose name is under the cursor.
Supported programming languages
Toad supports six programming languages (for example C++, Delphi, Perl …).
Using the Make CODE Statement from the Editor menu allows to convert the selected SQL statement into a code snippet of one of these languages and then paste it to the code file of that language.