I have a creaky old Debian system. The `cpan` shell is broken, and I don't know how it got that way, but basically I can't install anything now. It seems like ExtUtils::MakeMaker is involved, and something to do with configuration.

Here's an example where I try to install Tree::DAG_Node. 

root@dizzy# perl Makefile.PL
Writing Makefile for Tree::DAG_Node
root@dizzy# make
make: *** No rule to make target `/usr/lib/perl/5.8Config.pm',
  needed by `Makefile'.  Stop.

[download]

You'll notice there's a slash missing in the filename. I've found that that's because in `Makefile' there is no line such as: 

DIRFILESEP = /

[download]

Normally that's in the "MakeMaker constants section". So I tried adding that to the Makefile. 

root@dizzy# make
make: *** No rule to make target `blibdirs', needed by `config'.  Stop

[download]

I notice on a working system that there's a "MakeMaker blibdirs section" in the Makefile. On my broken system there is no such section.

The last lead I have is that ExtUtils::MakeMaker, unlike all other modules I've tried, does install fine! But it always installs even though it's already up to date.

Anyone seen something like this or have any ideas on how to fix things? Thanks.

UPDATE (2005-11-10): I forgot to mention that I've tried reinstalling every Perl package I could think of. Although it's testing/unstable, I have another such system that is fine. The broken machine tends to go long periods without updates, so maybe a package(s) didn't upgrade quite right. Or maybe someone here has hacked away at it.. I wish I at least knew what the problem files were. It's probably something silly and trivial.

In reply to my ExtUtils::MakeMaker is messed up by ForgotPasswordAgain

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