Hacker News new | ask | show | jobs
by serf 1910 days ago
>What's the need?

low-travel key switches used to be popular on CNC machines to reduce chances of machining-chips/debris getting into the keyboard. The key caps also used extended skirts to bring the cap as close to the PCB as possible. (example : http://www.calmotion.com/images/keyboard-1784-P_0h93fj2n.jpg )

Membrane keyboards and touch-screens have basically replaced any real switch in machining environments, but maybe a DIYer somewhere would find some use in those kind of environments.