Has anyone had any experience with Shimano Sora shifters?

Yep. They work great.

I fitted them to my hybrid when I put on drop bars. I wasnt concerned about problems with shifting from the drops, because I thought I would spend most of the time on the hoods. I wanted the drops for dealing with headwinds. The mechanism works very efficiently, provided cable tension is adjusted correctly (this applies to any indexed shifter). However I found that I spent most of my time on the drops, so I hung long hooks from the ends of the shifter buttons, engaging them with my thumbs from the drops.

They work for me.

i dont like them, if they didnt have the thumb shifter i would like them.

That cheesy little thumb shifter is the only problem with them. It's prone to breaking, and it can only be accessed from the hoods.

All the other Sora componentry is great...I just dislike the brifter.

If you can find some, Shimano makes an aftermarket only 8 speed brifter labeled the R-500. It's 105/Ultegra quality stuff in 8 speed. So worth it...that's what I'm running on my bike now.

Works great. No complains.

Thanks everyone.

Just bought a road bike- My first foray into tarmac riding- and it has Sora throughout. I don't know any different but they work fine for me.