Proponents of drop bars often laud them for the variety of available hand positions. That's why i like 'em, too. However, if you're running barcons or DT shifters, you're good to shift in the drops, but not so much from the top. If you're running thumbies or stem-mounts, you're good to shift from the top, but not so much from the drops. Brifters are good from the drops, passable from the hoods, but no good from the tops. I guess the best approach is to figure out not only where you spend most of your handlebar-time, but where you're at most often when you're actually *shifting*. And, if the OP spends a lot of time on the rivbike site, there's a chance s/he never uses the drops at all... ;P
Fwiw, i'm fat and lazy, but i run barcons on my drop-bar bikes. Sometimes, however, my drop bar bikes get some sort of alt-bar installed....
-rob