Originally Posted by Xavier65

Friction shifters are fine for selecting between 3-6 gears - like a trombonist hitting the right notes. But, beyond 6 gears, the chain has to be just right, and you'd be forever tweaking the shifter to get the sweet spot after each gear change.

I still have friction shifters on my 3x6 mountain bike, and don't really notice they're not indexed (I know the gears off by heart).

However, indexed shifters are delightful in comparison. Once you've installed them on a bike, there's no going back.