I've got a single speed, an internally geared three speed, a six speed with a road double, a touring triple eight speed with 24-36-48 chainrings, a road triple with 30-40-50 chainrings and a compact crankset with, I think 50-34. My least favorite is the compact.

The reason is that the shift point between the chainrings seems to be right in the middle of the most used gears so I'm constantly shifting in the front. It's way too much fiddling with gears. Furthermore, they are notorious for chain rub on the inside of the big ring when in the small ring reducing usable gearing even more. And you can't even trim it out with a friction front shifter.

I'm convinced the real reason compacts are so popular on road bikes is purely cosmetic. People who need lower gears can get a compact and not have to fear the "stigma" of having a double.