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What does “north-facing” actually mean?

Plain-English explanations of the terms keyboard enthusiasts use every day. Plus what to buy if you want it.

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north-facing · adjective

The switch is mounted with its LED slot toward the top of the board (toward the number row). Lights up keycap legends brilliantly from above, but causes physical interference with Cherry-profile keycaps on the home row — they bottom out against the switch housing instead of the stem.