I think StackOverflow is a good example of how confusing it can be. Their wall of possible ways to login is very confusing. Yes, I actually have accounts with ALL those sites listed... but which one did I setup for StackOverflow? If I pick an OpenID provider that wasn't associated with StackOverflow it starts to create a NEW account for me. Not what I wanted!
In the end, an Email and Password with my browser remembering it works just fine.