I'd advise making sure that you can build and install modules manually before using CPAN.pm. Try going thru the following steps:

• Download the gzip file for a module that you want from CPAN. Initially go for a pure-Perl module like the latest version of CGI.pm.
• Unzip and untar the file.
• Run thru the standard installation steps investigating any errors that you see:
  • perl Makefile.PL
  • make
  • make test
  • make install
• Having successfully installed a pure Perl module, try it again with a XS-based module like HTML::Parser.
• Once you've successfully built both types of module, try them again using CPAN.pm.

Well, I've never had problems with downloading and installing modules from CPAN as long as I was root and had all the other prerequisites.

You yould try to manually (instead of using CPAN) install a module, that is, download the module file, unzip and untar it and then try to install it...

The error message you are getting means that /usr/bin/make does not exist or is not executable. This is weird because Linux systems should have a working make utility and you even have a make program in /usr/bin. What you could try would be which make to see which make the shell thinks you want ... If this make is not /usr/bin/make then that's maybe one of the problems you have.

Somehow I get the feeling that make itself is failing ... Please try manually installing a module by running perl Makefile.pl and after that make in the same directory - if that works, then the problem is with your setup. If that dosen't work either, the problem is somewhere else :-(

CPAN.pm being unusable might be result of Debian's down-rev Perl 5.004.04, or perhaps from the way Debian packages a few CPAN modules as .deb's.   Could easily be something specific to how my host is setup.   Other Monks of the Debian persuasion care to share their experiences?

Update #2: another PM reference on installing modules:  (manually, not with cpan.pm)
perlman:perlmodinstall

Update #3: With young perlhopper's suggestion below, I took a closer look at /usr/lib/perl5/CPAN/Config.pm. This one works on a Debian host at work.   I'll compare with suspect Config.pm at home for diffs.   Also found that txt.gz files in $HOME/.cpan/sources/authors/ and modules/ had to be deleted after fixing incorrect urllist entry.

Yes, I know I need to point my urllist to a mirror   <grin>   I just want to get this working first.

$CPAN::Config = {
  'build_cache' => q[0],
  'build_dir' => q[/root/.cpan/build],
  'cpan_home' => q[/root/.cpan],
  'ftp' => q[/usr/bin/ftp],
  'ftp_proxy' => q[ ],
  'getcwd' => q[cwd],
  'gzip' => q[/bin/gzip],
  'http_proxy' => q[ ],
  'inactivity_timeout' => q[0],
  'index_expire' => q[1],
  'inhibit_startup_message' => q[0],
  'keep_source_where' => q[/root/.cpan/sources],
  'lynx' => q[/usr/bin/lynx],
  'make' => q[/usr/bin/make],
  'make_arg' => q[],
  'make_install_arg' => q[],
  'makepl_arg' => q[],
  'ncftp' => q[],
  'no_proxy' => q[ ],
  'pager' => q[/usr/bin/less],
  'shell' => q[/bin/bash],
  'tar' => q[/bin/tar],
  'unzip' => q[],
  'urllist' => [q[ftp://cpan.valueclick.com/CPAN]],
  'wait_list' => [q[wait://ls6.informatik.uni-dortmund.de:1404]],
};
1;
__END__
[download]

Mondo thanks to Corion, davorg, le, and young perlhopper for their help.   ++ all around.
    ybiC

p.s. would this mess be worth sanitizing into a mini-FAQ?   Or better yet, just a brief addendum comment to Aighearach's excellent CPAN.pm FAQ.

I run debian 2.1 and perl 5.00404 as well, and have had no trouble running the cpan module in shell mode. If you want to post or send me (mlogan@ccs.neu.edu) your 'Config.pm' file under the CPAN module directory, I will take a look at it and see if it differs from mine significantly.

Good Luck,
-Mark

After it was all working, I made the mistake of following CPAN shell's suggestion of upgrading itself.   Any use of cpan.pm now results in a nasty zlibVersion error and rude return to host shell without closing the lock file.   :^(   CPAN.pm v1.54 apparantly requires Zlib 1.08, while Debian 2.1 provides Zlib 1.01.

Upgrading Debian Zlib to v1.08 would also force an upgrade of 15 other .deb's, including apache, mailtools, and perl itself with all associated libs.   Needless to say, I'm not thrilled with that idea on a production host.

Is there a cpan method for downgrading itself?

Update: couple suggestions from young_perlhopper - install latest zlib (gzip?) to a non-default location, AND/OR rm cpan.pm and do a manual make/install.   Or, I may try copying CPAN.pm v1.202 from working Debian box at home.
    cheers,
    ybiC