I currently have three bikes. One with a triple (and 8 ring cassette), one with a compact (and 10 ring cassette) and a standard (with 6 ring cassette). Off the top of my head I'm not sure of their exact gearing.

On the triple, I find I am often in the middle ring but hit up the big ring for descents and good straightaways and only hit the small ring if I am going up a tough hill. On the compact, I find I shift a lot between the big ring and the little ring in most situations. I also seem to want to cross chain more with it. On the standard I almost always sit in the big ring, going to the smaller one on hills. This bike is new to me though, so I'm still working out the gearing on what I like best.

I started with the triple, got the compact bike, then the standard. Of the three, I'd say I like the gearing on the triple the best. I love the option of having a bigger ring to blast it when I want or a small granny ring to get me through the tough times. If I had to pick one, I'd use a triple and ignore all the BS talkers.