JenandBen--To answer you question, yes, my LO (4 months, 4th week) has finally stopped crying when it comes to sleep. Well, it's very minimal, at most. Here's how we got to this point:
Around 9 weeks, I think, I discovered that I was putting her down too soon, like I said. So, I waited for tired coos and then did a longer winddown that including reading 1 or 2 books. Then, we shush/patted like crazy.
Then, last week, I decided it was time to wean from the swaddle and paci, because I wanted her to be more independent. It's taken a week, but she now 1.) sleeps unswaddled, 2.) opts to suck her fingers instead of a pacifier--something she can control (and I was trying from almost day one to inhibit but now accept), and 3.) uses a stuffed bunny to snuggle. And, this last nap (she's sleeping as I type), there was no crying and only about 10 seconds of fussing; in all, it took about 2-3 minutes for her to fall asleep, and I was tippy-toeing out of the room as she was finally drifting off. (We're still working on me leaving while her eyes are open.)
To get to this point, I had to accept the fact that she was going to cry. And she did. The first nap without swaddle and paci, she cried for an HOUR! It lessened each time. Around the fourth day, I started to feel really positive. I tried PU/PD, but it made her too mad (as it does for many spritied LOs), so I just stood with her, kept my hands on her, and used comforting words, like "You can do it...you're okay...." I only picked her up if I felt it was really necessary, since putting her down always seemed to break her heart.
I'm not sure if I could've taugt independent sleep this way when she was younger, but I wish I'd have tried. My advice would be to give shush/pat a go...but gradually lessen that amount of assistance you give your LO in getting to sleep.