Why does my web page fade instead of scroll?

What is so bad/good about using vertical scroll bars inside a web page?

• Sometimes dynamic text for a section can end up so long that it breaks a layout. Scrolling can help keep the layout intact but then forces the user to scroll to read the rest of the content. But is that a bad thing? Are users bothered by scrolling inside of a page (rather than scrolling the page itself)? What are the situations where using a scroll bar is bad versus where it is a good idea?

• Answer:

  It's a matter of aesthetics and annoyance. The OS scroll bars might stick out like a sore thumb in the middle of the page. Boxes with scrolling content might not work with the scroll wheel depending on focus and placement of the cursor. Scrolled content also limits content skimming ability. Also, if the user is using Mac OS X 10.7 Lion or later, they won't know an area is scrollable because scroll bars are invisible prior to initiating the scrolling action.