I just finished this article on seochat. http://www.seochat.com/c/a/Google-Optimization-Help/How-to-Steal-to-the-Top-of-Google-part-1/2/ It states that "Your title tag includes only the keyword on which you're focusing." Does this still apply?
I think this apply, also if your brand is “well known†you can even include it in your title, you can even target longer phrases if they're relevant (Limiting it to the length to 65 characters (including spaces) or less.
The longer your title tag, the more your keyword effectiveness in that title tag is watered down. You can have 2 or three keywords in your title tag, but in most cases there is little point as you could be using a separate page for each keyword. The only occasion where you should be using more than one keyword in a title tag is when the two phrases are part of each other. i.e. web site design AND web site design company
I think the content of the title tag is absoultely depends on the number of indexed sites, and their PR. When the competition for the desired keyphrase is not so killer you can place more words in it.