On this weekends trip to the lakes (cue: downpour) I came upon a fairly neat way of turning a Maglite pocket torch into a lantern for general tent illumination. Just unscrew the head and lens assembly completely (ie. remove it to expose the bulb) and stick a ping-pong ball on the end to protect the bulb and diffuse the light. If you have a steady enough hand you can cut a hole in the ball that will allow you to screw the ball onto the thread which holds the head on. Two of these "lanterns" lit a two man tent well enough to read by without straining.
Rob
(A)VSL 2nd Ilkeston FURY VSU
via uk.rec.scouting