My history with indoor cycling runs the gamut.
I was a Spinning instructor for ten years (and in fact that's how I met my wife - we were both instructors for the same gym.) The gym I worked for was a converted supermarket site, and our Spinning studio was the old meat locker in the back. It was painted black and felt like a cave. I was the only instructor there who actually rode outside, so I used to do a race day where I'd simulate actual courses I'd raced on (e.g., Bear Creek or Fair Hill.) This was back in the early 00's, and I always thought that what we really needed in those classes was a way to hold the "racers" accountable - for example, there was one woman who I always knew was faking the effort and while I figured it was her hour to do with as she pleased, there were a few folks in my class who were genuinely offended that she wasn't doing a real effort. The funny thing is, after I quit doing it, the tech caught up with it and now they can project your effort on a screen in programs like Peloton and stuff like that so there is that accountability.
As far as using a trainer or rollers, I've used both. I had a typical fluid trainer and never really enjoyed that at all. Rollers were a little better but still pretty mind-numbing. I used the rollers the last few years only when I absolutely couldn't get outside. I'd usually watch something on Netflix or DVDs and just try to last until I couldn't stand it anymore. I'd just set up my laptop on a table in front of me and pedal as I watched. For example, I would set a goal to make it through two episodes of a show on Netflix and usually by the tie I made it to the end, I'd be counting down the seconds. There was never a training goal in any of those rides.
In general, I just sucked it up and rode outside regardless of conditions. I did this despite two irrefutable facts: one, freezing air severely exasperates my asthma (I spend hours after a winter ride just coughing my lungs up) and two, I just generally hate cold weather. The upside was occasionally epic ice beard pics ...
New Years Eve in Philly
The downsides were the coughing, and the possible long term damage I've done to my fingers and toes from constantly freezing and thawing them out.
Over the last few years, I've been getting less and less enthusiastic to do these kind of rides. This year has been especially tough. I'm not sure why - I think it's a combination of an earlier onset of really cold weather (I think we typically have more time to adapt to temps int he teens than we have this year) and just my age. I'm just not enjoying riding outside as much as I have in the past. I still get a few good rides in and I doubt I'll ever stop riding outside in the winter altogether (I'm much more likely to move to a warmer climate than give up outside riding), but I'm definitely less enthusiastic about regularly riding in sub-20 weather than I would have been a few years back.
So this year I decided to explore indoor riding again. A few years ago I built a gym in our basement for my wife. There was a small section that was unused, though, and I realized over the Xmas break that it was perfect for a mini cycling "studio". It became kind of a project to work on over time I was off. I picked up a smart TV and Apple TV from Best Buy and bought a Wahoo Kickr "pain cave" bundle. and carved out a small corner of the basement as my own ...
It was fun to plan it out and set it up (I had to do a bit of remodeling of the gym to make it work.) I also got on Zwift and I have to say that I dig it. I've never been a gamer, so I have no frame of reference for the quality of the graphics, but it kind of seems that it should be compared to an MMRPG vs. a typical video game, so I imagine the graphics are fine for that sort of thing ... ??? ... I have no idea. It works for me. The rides are tough enough and I enjoy the courses they have. For those on the fence, though, if at all possible I do recommend getting a larger screen than a laptop to project on. I did a 55 inch screen, and it feels immersive enough that at times I want to lean into turns and stuff like that. For me that was a key part of it - I don't think I'd enjoy it as much if I was looking at my laptop. The Kickr is pretty expensive, but you can get a cheaper smart trainer if you want and the rest of the setup for me was pretty cheap - the TV was on a clearance after Xmas and I was able to get a pretty good deal on the Apple TV too (a promotion for the new 4K version made it cheaper than the original.) If you can get good deals on that stuff, I'd say the studio setup is the way to go. So far, I've done a few rides of around an hour and a half and the time flies by.
Like I said, it won't stop me from riding outside, but it's nice to know that I can still get a ride in that I enjoy when it's not possible to do so outdoors. In the past, if I couldn't psyche myself up to go out in the freezing cold, I'd just skip a ride altogether. That's not the case anymore. Oh - and one other bonus: with the Apple TV, I was able to watch the CX National championships last Sunday while pedaling. And this summer I'll be able to watch the World Cup XC on the RedBull TV app the same way. So that's pretty cool, too.