I tried the strategy options before knowing the combat replay, in conjunction with the Simulator, but that doesn't prevent me from doing very important mistakes. I sent two missile cruisers against a group of satellites, to only understand why they aren't working after ten attempts.
Fighters seem to be very useful, and they can be very interesting to surprise your opponent, if he didn't know you were using fighters for instance and so wasn't having much PDC.
I am still trying to find an use for Drones, except for ambushes to destroy/damage a few warships when your own fleet is much weaker. But that requires your Drones to target the good ships instead of chasing a transport.
