I just came in contact with this Application note, explaining how to design those simple fluorescent inverters found in most CFL's.

What puzzles me, it is dated quite late: July 2000, at that time this topology was already common as dirt... Probably (at that time still) Philips was introducing the transistors in the small TO92 format...

Sometimes data sheet applications just show simple applications, that just about anyone can build with a handful of parts commonly found in the junk draw, and then you have to work on it from there. But I've also seen some data sheets show things that didn't really hit mainstream markets until years later..

But speaking of schematics you haven't seen any for driving an 18 watt LPS lamp from a 12 source, other then the one from Jonathan B. Smick..