how to run automake/conf?

[Anders Lindgren]

   I have also been adding a target to newlib -- which I build from within 
GCC's build system to get a complete toolchain. I can't seem to regenerate 
Makefile.in, either. Building is (unfortunately and out of my control) 
done on cygwin.

   I've tried both newlib-1.14.0 and newlib-1.15.0, and the autotools I 
have are from a full cygwin install from May last year, which includes:

aclocal-1.4 aclocal-1.6 aclocal-1.7 aclocal-1.8 aclocal-1.9
automake-1.4 automake-1.6 automake-1.7 automake-1.8 automake-1.9
autoconf-2.13 autoconf-2.5x

   With newlib-1.14.0 I can actually regenerate aclocal.m4, Makefile.in and 
configure by running aclocal-1.4, automake-1.4 --cygnus and autoconf-2.5x, 
but the build failed (ISTR the error was configure trying to execute an 
unexpanded AC_CC_PROG macro). To be able to build, I eventually ended up 
having to copy aclocal.m4 and configure from sys/arm, and only regenerate 
Makefile.in and then edit the value of $ac_unique_file to match my now 
unused configure.in. Ugly hack!

   With newlib-1.15.0 I can't seem to regenerate aclocal.m4 in any way that 
automake-1.9 swallows[0], and copying the aclocal.m4 from the sys/arm dir 
(is this even supposed to work?) causes automake-1.9 --cygnus to fail[1]. 
Hence I can't even apply the above ad hoc solution -- lest perhaps if I 
copy Makefile.in from sys/arm and edit that, too. But that's not a path I 
want to be walking, obviously...

   These hacks are just nonsense of course. I really don't know much about 
how autotools works and everytime I assume that I just need to run the 
correct versions of "aclocal", "automake --cygnus" and "autoconf" in that 
order in $sys_dir, everything falls together. I'd really like to know the 
exact changes and commands I am supposed to make in my $sys_dir to get 
this to work cleanly so I can figure out what I am doing wrong.

   Anyone want to share a clue with an autotools newbie?

[0] /usr/share/aclocal/pstoedit.m4:7: warning: underquoted definition of 
AM_PATH_PSTOEDIT [...]
/usr/share/aclocal/libsmi.m4:8: warning: underquoted definition of 
AM_PATH_LIBSMI
/usr/share/aclocal/libmcrypt.m4:17: warning: underquoted definition of 
AM_PATH_LIBMCRYPT
/usr/share/aclocal/cppunit.m4:4: warning: underquoted definition of 
AM_PATH_CPPUNIT

[1] Makefile.am: required file `../../../../compile' not found

Thanks in advance,
ali:)