Donna, As another old timer, (started in 1972, became an independent in 1978), all the time here in Columbus, Ohio, I too have seen the changes you refer to.
I just returned from the conference (couldn't stay tonight, too much going on tomorrow), but a couple of the speakers talked about the changes we are seeing in the industry and the speed at which they are occuring. 
Regarding Michelle's comments on Realty Data, it was an enlightening presentation.  Like both of you, I don't like this trend to thin-title plant service, but Mr Wedge showed a lot of charecter in addressing us and making clear what is happening in that area of the buisiness.  He pointed out the fact that the information they have is only available to members that have been checked by the company and are password protected.  Not perfect, but better than wide open.  What I found most interesting was the fact that many of these loans they need the limited information on are nothing more than glorified lines of credit, the ability to secure the property is almost secondary.  I do not recall, nor did I follow all the acronyms, but the gist seemed to be that for many of these equity loans, just the ability to file a mortgage improved the lenders return on these loans because of the upfront charges, which they can't charge without recording a mortgage, and the fact that the title may not be clear or they may not even have a valid lien is not that important.  As those of  us that do a lot of foreclosure work know, a large number of these equity lenders have no interest in persuing foreclosure, or even answering when the first mortgage lender forecloses.
Mr. Wedge stated during his presentation, and mentioned again to me afterwards, that he did not think his produce was valid for a property sale.