>Enough to get lost in the various ways to access data - ADO.Net , LINQ , Entities etc. I have picked up pieces here and there to the point that I am now very confused. This is one of the reasons that I really do not like Microsoft products with the exception of VFP. They introduce new technologies, but they are not complete and just about the time they make it truly workable the next 'great' thing is rolled out the door but again it is not quite complete... I could go on and on but I think you can see my point.

You will only be confused if you try to swallow all available technology being introduced - MS or Not - at once. If you want database manipulation, try to look at ADO.Net + ENTITY Framework. Take one technology at a time, preferrably the technology that is applicable to what you're doing now so you can move forward. Basically, data manipulation in .Net can be done in many ways using many tools (3rd party or not). I would suggest you to look deeper on ENTITY Framework if you want MS Technology in data manipulation. Try to look at nHibernate, if otherwise.