PetaPOCO

I still have not really mastered the nuances of Entity Framework. I see that there are so many micro ORMs in this post. I am not sure if there is a difference between ORM and micro-ORM. Is it the support of keys and constaints in full-fledged ORMs.

Also, I used to like the simple SqlHelper of Enterprise Library. That really is a micro-ORM to me ;)

I think a micro-ORM is essentially an ORM that covers 80% of the features someone might need in an ORM. So it varies from case to case, but generally I think micro-ORMs try to stay out of your way, whereas full-fledged ORMs like NHibernate or EF require a significant investment in configuration. They also tend to push you in a certain direction when it comes to how you design your DAL.