Stellarola, do you realize that BYOAC is has many FAQs on these simple concepts (arcade controls)? Do you see a vertical list of FAQ's on the left side of your screen (with different colored buttons)?
If you don't see the faqs, then you may have linked directly to the arcadecontrols.org forum (which is different than the arcadecontrols.com website). Go to the homepage (
www.arcadecontrols.com and click on the "Controls" button on the left, then click on the "button" section for a detailed description (and pics) of microswitch buttons. There are FAQ's on every other area of arcade controls including Game Consoles (dreamcast hacking) and monitors, and cabinet construction.
I find it surprising that most people don't even know the rest of this great site even exists.