T8 or not: my experiences with electronic ballasts has been extremely positive so far (been using them for over 15yrs now). This is mainly due to the following reasons:
(1) the lack of /need of pre-heater hookups. Electronic ballasts do not need pre-heating set up to create the pre-heating to prepare for the striking of the ionisation stage.
(2) no striker needed (usually comes as a form of a capacitor (round aluminium can with 2 legs, which creates a blue/purple arcing look inside the can when "striking" happens).
(3) more precise control of the current used than mag ballasts.
Because of all of these, electronic ballasts (run on high frequency), when done right, can make those tubes lasts extremely long...
It is not impossible for those typical T8 tubes to last >10,000hrs or more under average operational conditions.
Oh BTW: mag ballasts relies extensively on pre-heater hookups. If any of the pre-heater wiring inside the tube becomes open, the tube is essentially "toast" and cannot be used.
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