"Floating" switches — why?

[seebart]

Anyway, I have to call bullshit on the claim that it's "easier to clean". It's easier for dust and hairs to get there in the first place. You can blow out some of it easily, but the most significant dirt is on keycap tops anyway, because ones fingertips come into contact with them—that matters, not some dirt below the keycaps. And if you remove keycaps for proper cleaning, it's easy to clean the plate/PCB and switch covers too.

Right, there's a reason keyboards have cases, bottom and top. I never use any of my keyboards "topless".

[Findecanor]

Furthermore, I'm aiming for a keyboard with an absolutely minimal footprint ...

Except that the edges of your case extend out on each side, not being aligned to the footprint of the keys.
Size-wise, there could just as well have been a thin frame around the keys.

[david2t83w]

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In theory a raised perimeter that boxes in the keys will also box in more dirt under the keys. With floating keys you could give your keyboard a blast of air and the dirt would be ejected out the other side. However, for me personally, I prefer my keys to be boxed in, because I enjoy opening up a model m to clean it out periodically, seeing hardware infiltrated and defiled with organic matter gives me real pleasure.

[need]

What irritates me most are those high profile cases that aren't high enough to completely cover the keycaps edges, thus showing a bit of the internals. Or having a big gap between keycaps and case inner perimeter.. It just look sloppy. From what I've seen, only Korean customs have enough attention to detail to do it right, every time. There are exceptions of course.

For low profile cases, I prefer ones without the lip and sitting flush with the keycaps. One example would be the Vortex Core. Be it thick or thin, lip just seem unnecessary on a low profile case that's meant to be minimalistic. In my opinion, low profile cases with lip is just trying to mimic the look of a high profile case, and of course it will never look better than the real deal.

[richfiles]

Furthermore, I'm aiming for a keyboard with an absolutely minimal footprint ...

Except that the edges of your case extend out on each side, not being aligned to the footprint of the keys.
Size-wise, there could just as well have been a thin frame around the keys.

Okay, you got me there... I wanted a relatively minimal footprint, but one that still let me show off my blue anodized plate and the brass round head screws securing it.

The ACTUAL determining factor on my keyboard footprint is the materials used. I purchased a 1/4 by 1/2 inch strip of oak trim from the hardware store, and made all the side walls of the keyboard enclosure out of that. I only used hand saws and files for cutting the bits to shape, so I didn't have the benefit of a thin walled milled lower enclosure, or anything of that sort. Basically, my keyboard footprint is the minimum I could do with a 1/4 inch border (plus about a millimeter or so gap for spacing). I was also trying to prove a point, that you didn't need CNC or manual milling machines to make a reasonable keyboard case, that all you needed was hand tools and cheap materials. I spent less than $6 total cost for all the wood and stain to make my keyboard frame and wrist rest, thanks to salvaged scraps and cheap trim pieces used. The only major cost was my time to make it.

In that sense, yes, it's the minimum footprint I could achieve without a CNC or manual mill to route out a thinner walled aluminum enclosure that would line up with my keys. In the end, it works for me, cause it's still a very small footprint, and it lets me see my work.

[rsbseb]

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In theory a raised perimeter that boxes in the keys will also box in more dirt under the keys. With floating keys you could give your keyboard a blast of air and the dirt would be ejected out the other side. However, for me personally, I prefer my keys to be boxed in, because I enjoy opening up a model m to clean it out periodically, seeing hardware infiltrated and defiled with organic matter gives me real pleasure.

There goes my appetite

[ArtoriasEdgeworth]

*cue Seinfeld theme*
What's the deeeal with floating switches?

Honestly, I don't care whether or not they're "floating" or not. It's great to see actually clean plates on either.
What I do care about is avoiding the vomit-worthy mess that david2t83w posted above.

[Findecanor]

I have cleaned out worse from a found Razer Blackwidow that was only two years old ...

Anyway. I wish that manufacturers would focus on minimizing light-bleed and sound.