mysqldump and gzip/bzip2 in one command

Handy tip found here, really I just want to keep it for my own use but maybe someone else will find it useful.

mysqldump -l --host=myserver.net -u "mysqlusername" -p --opt nameofthedatabase | bzip2 -cq9 > filename.for.backup.sql.bz2

options listed for mysqldump:
-l locks tables, leave it out if necessary
–host specifies host, default is localhost
-u gives your username
-p prompts for password
–opt formats nicely for backup

options listed for gzip/bzip2 (interchangeable)
-c uses stdin for input
-q makes gzip/bzip2 be quiet so no stray prompts
-9 specifies compression level, can be 1-9

Boxee on Ubuntu – worth it?

Trying to get rid of my cable, and I’ve been reading a lot about the various means of doing so. The most appealing to me is Boxee as it is entirely open source. So I decided to repurpose an old desktop box to see if I could make it work. Specs: 2.8ghz P4, 1GB RAM, ATI Radeon 9250 PCI with TV out, Ensoniq 5.1 PCI. I switched out the hard drive and got to work.

First I installed the latest Ubuntu, as of this writing 9.04 Jaunty. Installation went without a hitch, all hardware was recognized. The built-in ATI driver seemed to work really well. I had a bit of difficulty getting the system to default to the Ensoniq card but this link helped me sort it out.

Boxee installation was easy. Needed to add “deb http://apt.boxee.tv jaunty -main” to System -> Software Sources, then you can use Synaptics Package Manager to install Boxee (or, in a console: “apt-get install boxee”).

I was impressed with the speed at which I was able to convert the box and get the software installed “off the shelf.” However when I tried to run Boxee, I got nothing more than a little flash as the window opened and immediately closed. After some more searching I found that you could run Boxee from a command line for troubleshooting:

/opt/boxee/run-boxee-desktop

The error was “CreateWindow.” Some more googling helped little, but I think I narrowed down the problem to the latest OpenGL drivers. Someone suggested that downgrading to 2.6 from 2.7 on Jaunty helped.

I figured, why bother? Somewhere in my searches, I read that Boxee officially supports 8.04 Hardy so I pulled out my old disk and reinstalled Ubuntu, again, without a hitch. Except, my video seemed slightly off, and I didn’t seem to have the performance that I had with 9.04.

Again, added the software source, installed Boxee, and ran it. This time I got to the menu and was able to navigate around. However, when I went to any channels, I could never view the video. It would just show the “waiting” widget forever. I waited about 15 minutes and gave up.

By this time I was getting somewhat frustrated, so I thought I’d give it one more try with the middle release, 8.10 Intrepid. After this installation, I made sure to install all of the suggested updates from the update manager. (I skipped that step with Hardy.) Afterwards I added the boxee.tv source, installed boxee, adjusted my ALSA settings, and even restarted.

Third time was a charm! I was surfing Boxee like an old pro. I flipped through a few “channels” and marveled at the wide selection of stuff that’s available. I couldn’t resist watching a Ren and Stimpy episode on Joost. I was able to view Hulu content without problems. I explored NextNewNetworks. These are default “channels” that show up on the start page as “recommendations” — I haven’t explored what’s available too deeply.

I did have a few problems. The inability to view Netflix was quite disappointing. In addition, the application locked up during page transitions several times, and once while adjusting the sound. The lockups border on making the application unusable.

However, I am greatly impressed with what I’ve seen so far. From the sound of it, Netflix support is right around the corner. Also I think that with more “standard” hardware I would have a much easier time running Boxee. I’m thinking the Nvidia ION hardware and Boxee are going to converge nicely in the coming months. One of these fine units would look delightful as part of my media center.