diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
index 9255ffb..81e6964 100644
--- a/README.md
+++ b/README.md
@@ -1,3 +1,13 @@
 The purpose of this script is to backup the contents of Docker container-based database (either PostgreSQL or MariaDB) to a local 'dump' file (SQL format), which is then compressed to conserve disk space. 
 
 The system is designed to be run regularly (perhaps hourly, or daily) via cron, and to keep a pre-determined (via configuration) number of past, deleting excess backup files to conserve disk space. 
+
+## To install
+
+To install this script, by our convention on Docker Compose hosts, we clone it into `/home/data/scripts` (creating the directory if necessary), via `git clone git@git.oeru.org:oeru/docker-compose-dbbackup.git`.
+
+Then, in that directory, we copy the relevant '\*.conf-sample' configuration file and copy it to a '\*.conf' file and adjust its values. You can try running the backup to test it by running (for example)
+
+`./mariadbbackup-docker-compose --hourly`
+
+which should, if the configuration is valid, create an hourly database backup (starting with the database name with '-hourly' affixed, e.g. )
diff --git a/dbbackup-cron b/dbbackup-cron
index 0afc49a..4b50a2c 100644
--- a/dbbackup-cron
+++ b/dbbackup-cron
@@ -4,17 +4,17 @@ PATH=/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/sbin:/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin
 # run system backups
 #
 # hourly - at 5 minutes past mon-sat
-25 * * * * root /home/data/scripts/docker-compose-dbbackup/dbbackup-docker-compose -c default-docker-compose.conf --hourly 
+25 * * * * root /home/data/mastodon.oeru.org/scripts/dbbackup/dbbackup-docker-compose -c /home/data/mastodon.oeru.org/scripts/dbbackup/mastodon.conf --hourly 
 #
 # daily - at 7:30 pm, mon-sat
-30 19 * * * root /home/data/scripts/docker-compose-dbbackup/dbbackup-docker-compose -c default-docker-compose.conf --daily
+30 19 * * * root /home/data/mastodon.oeru.org/scripts/dbbackup/dbbackup-docker-compose -c /home/data/mastodon.oeru.org/scripts/dbbackup/mastodon.conf --daily
 #
 # weekly - at 7:30 pm, sun
-30 19 * * sun   root /home/data/scripts/docker-compose-dbbackup/dbbackup-docker-compose -c default-docker-compose.conf --weekly
+30 19 * * sun   root /home/data/mastodon.oeru.org/scripts/dbbackup/dbbackup-docker-compose -c /home/data/mastodon.oeru.org/scripts/dbbackup/mastodon.conf --weekly
 #
 # monthly - at 8:30 pm, on the first of the last of the month
-30 20 1 * *   root /home/data/scripts/docker-compose-dbbackup/dbbackup-docker-compose -c default-docker-compose.conf --monthly
+30 20 1 * *   root /home/data/mastodon.oeru.org/scripts/dbbackup/dbbackup-docker-compose -c /home/data/mastodon.oeru.org/scripts/dbbackup/mastodon.conf --monthly
 #
 # yearly - at 8:30 pm, on the first of January.
-30 20 1 1 *   root /home/data/scripts/docker-compose-dbbackup/dbbackup-docker-compose -c default-docker-compose.conf --yearly
+30 20 1 1 *   root /home/data/mastodon.oeru.org/scripts/dbbackup/dbbackup-docker-compose -c /home/data/mastodon.oeru.org/scripts/dbbackup/mastodon.conf--yearly
 
diff --git a/dbbackup-docker-compose b/dbbackup-docker-compose
index 5e08f22..a44cc57 100755
--- a/dbbackup-docker-compose
+++ b/dbbackup-docker-compose
@@ -22,16 +22,14 @@ BU_FROOT_WEEKLY=weekly
 BU_FROOT_MONTHLY=monthly
 BU_FROOT_YEARLY=yearly
 #
-# Set backup priority: -20 highest, 0 default, 19 lowest
-NICE_VAL=0
 # this can be overridden at invocation
 BU_CONF=default-docker-compose.conf
-# output for debugging... 0 = false, 1 = true
+# # output for debugging...
 VERBOSE=0
 #
 # Stuff that should be universal for this install...
 # where we can find this app...
-MAIN_DIR=/home/data/scripts/docker-compose-dbbackup
+#MAIN_DIR=`pwd`
 # determine today's date
 DATE=`date   '+%Y-%m-%d-%a'`
 # determine today's date
@@ -51,8 +49,6 @@ MAIL=`which mail`
 # database dump utility
 DC=`which docker-compose`
 #DEF_ARGS="-C -d -O -x"
-# nice
-NICE=`which nice`
 #
 # pattern for "ls" command to build list of
 # pruneable backup files...
@@ -140,13 +136,13 @@ delete_old() {
 do_backup() {
    FILE=$1
    CONTAINER=$2
-   VER=`$DC exec $CONTAINER pg_config --version`
+   VER=`$DC exec -T $CONTAINER pg_config --version`
    verbose "Postgres version $VER - echoing to backup: $FILE"
    echo "--" > $FILE
    echo "-- PostgreSQL Version: $VER" >> $FILE
    echo "--" >> $FILE
    echo "" >> $FILE
-   CMD="$NICE -${NICE_VAL} $DC exec $CONTAINER $DUMP_CMD"
+   CMD="$DC exec -T $CONTAINER $DUMP_CMD"
    verbose "doing database dump: $CMD"
    $CMD >> $FILE
 }
@@ -234,7 +230,7 @@ do_backup $FILEPATH $DC_CONTAINER
 message "completed backup"
 # compress the backup
 message "compressing $FILEPATH"
-$NICE -${NICE_VAL} $GZIP $FILEPATH
+$GZIP $FILEPATH
 # return to where you started from...
 cd $OLD_DIR
 #
diff --git a/default-docker-compose.conf-sample b/default-docker-compose.conf-sample
index 6776d5d..0e4c8d2 100644
--- a/default-docker-compose.conf-sample
+++ b/default-docker-compose.conf-sample
@@ -17,18 +17,3 @@ DUMP_CMD='pg_dumpall -c -U postgres'
 # email address to send reports to, and subject
 EMAIL=webmaster@oerfoundation.org
 EMAIL_SUBJ="Mastodon on OERu Open Postgres Backup Report"
-#
-# Optional overrides
-#
-# Default retention
-#BU_TO_KEEP_HOURLY=24
-#BU_TO_KEEP_DAILY=7
-#BU_TO_KEEP_WEEKLY=4
-#BU_TO_KEEP_MONTHLY=12
-#BU_TO_KEEP_YEARLY=7
-#
-# Set backup priority: -20 highest, 0 default, 19 lowest
-#NICE_VAL=0
-#
-# Verbosity 0 = false, 1 = true
-#VERBOSE=0
diff --git a/default-mariadb-docker-compose.conf-sample b/default-mariadb-docker-compose.conf
similarity index 100%
rename from default-mariadb-docker-compose.conf-sample
rename to default-mariadb-docker-compose.conf
diff --git a/mariadbbackup-docker-compose b/mariadbbackup-docker-compose
old mode 100755
new mode 100644
index 340b4e8..6e2d657
--- a/mariadbbackup-docker-compose
+++ b/mariadbbackup-docker-compose
@@ -15,7 +15,7 @@ BU_TO_KEEP_WEEKLY=4
 BU_TO_KEEP_MONTHLY=12
 BU_TO_KEEP_YEARLY=7
 #
-#BU_FROOT=alldbs
+BU_FROOT=alldbs
 BU_FROOT_HOURLY=hourly
 BU_FROOT_DAILY=daily
 BU_FROOT_WEEKLY=weekly
@@ -23,7 +23,7 @@ BU_FROOT_MONTHLY=monthly
 BU_FROOT_YEARLY=yearly
 #
 # this can be overridden at invocation
-BU_CONF=default-mariadb-docker-compose.conf
+BU_CONF=default-docker-compose.conf
 # # output for debugging...
 VERBOSE=0
 #
@@ -135,9 +135,9 @@ delete_old() {
 #
 do_backup() {
    FILE=$1
-   DATABASE="$(get_value $DC_DB_NAME_VAR $DC_FILE)"
-   USER="$(get_value $DC_DB_USER_VAR $DC_FILE)"
-   PASSWORD="$(get_value $DC_DB_PASSWORD_VAR $DC_FILE)"
+   DATABASE="$(get_value DC_DB_NAME_VAR $DC_FILE)"
+   USER="$(get_value DC_DB_USER_VAR $DC_FILE)"
+   PASSWORD="$(get_value DC_DB_PASSWORD_VAR $DC_FILE)"
    verbose "debug - DB details: USER = $USER, PASSWORD = $PASSWORD, DB = $DATABASE"
    VER=`$DC exec $DC_CONTAINER mysql --version`
    verbose "MariaDB version $VER - echoing to backup: $FILE"
@@ -162,7 +162,7 @@ while test $# -ne 0 ; do
   case $1 in
     --config|-c)
       shift # shift from the flag to the value
-      verbose "setting configuration file to $1"
+      verbose "setting configuration directory to $1"
       BU_CONF=$1
     ;;
     --hourly|-h)
@@ -191,13 +191,13 @@ done
 #
 #
 # create the blank email report
-#create_tmp_email
+create_tmp_email
 #
 if test -f $BU_CONF ; then
     verbose "Reading default in $BU_CONF"
     source $BU_CONF
 else
-    message "Couldn't find or read $BU_CONF"
+    error "Couldn't find or read $BU_CONF"
     exit 1
 fi
 #
@@ -211,9 +211,6 @@ cd $DC_DIR
 #
 # a timestamp for logging purposes
 STAMP=`date  '+%Y-%m-%d_%H-%M-%S'`
-# 
-# set the root based on the name of the database... 
-BU_FROOT="$(get_value $DC_DB_NAME_VAR $DC_FILE)"
 #
 # generate the filename
 INC="BU_FROOT_$TASK"
@@ -239,5 +236,5 @@ cd $OLD_DIR
 #
 # sent resulting email report
 #
-#send_email_report
+send_email_report
 exit 0