So, while troubleshooting the ol' 4 bit LCD thing, I goofed and swapped the +5v and gnd for the LED. And now... yeah, you guessed it. No LED. So, am I hosed? If so...
The LED looks more glass like, not like most LEDS. Anyone know if it can it be removed so I can replace it? It looks like a 3mm, but not totally sure. Drilling it might crack the LCD. So, what to do?
My electronics buddies and I call this "permanent powersave mode".
Maybe leave it in place and add your own LEDs? No way to know without seeing a photo, use your judgment.
The LEDs are usually embedded in clear plastic and may be glued or epoxied to the plastic
It may be possible to cut the LED pins and remove the backlight assembly but that will depend on how your LCD is constructed, on some LCDs that may be extremely difficult on others it may be trivial
Post some high res pics on flickr, if you can, so we can take a look 