Well, I learned a lesson last night--when you order a spare bulb, check the box carefully when you receive it.

I was watching TV, and my bulb suddenly went.

So I go grab my spare, and it does not fit. My HLN617W takes BP96-00224J and they sent a BP96-00224B(O). I hadn't checked closely when I received this package, nearly a year and a half ago.

This was annoying, but based on examination of the bulbs themselves and some Googling, it appears that the bulbs themselves are compatible electrically and physically, so I took the bulb out of the B assembly and put it in my J assembly, and that seems to be working.

Anyway, the lesson here is to not be a doofus like I was, and inspect anything you order, especially if you don't plan to use it for a long time!

I'm curious about one thing. The new bulb had a mysterious disc attached to the rear terminal. The old bulb had no such disc. You can see the disc in this YouTube video, at about 1:05: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=POvahoHUzU4

Anyone know what that disc does?