Tact Switches

[beastlyballer33]

what would be the reason to get a tact switch with 4 prongs (sorry if thats wrong not the correct way to put it im a noob) instead of 2?

[Tralius]

Im pretty sure they would be 2 pole, so you can have the switch doing 2 different things at the same time without interfering with eachother. Just bell one out with a multimeter or test light to see which pins are conducting when open and closed.

[timmeh87]

They could be two pole (, single throw) switches, but a lot of single pole switches are placed into the 4-pin package for mechanical stability. If there were only two pins, it could flex a little every time you press it, until pop, it breaks off like a cheap laptop power jack.

Most of the SPST tact switches with 4 pins have two pairs of pins shorted together internally. You can just take any two diagonally opposite pins, no matter which way the switch is rotated (draw it if you need to prove it to yourself)