automake / autoconf
 

So I'm trying to install a package (librfid), and to do that I think I need automake. When I do an apt-get install automake, it says:

"Package automake is not available, but is referred to by another package. This may mean that the package is missing, has been obsoleted, or is only available from another source.
E: Package automake has no installation candidate"

So then I try an apt-get install automake1.9, and get:

"Some packages could not be installed. This may mean that you have requested an impossible situation or if yoyu are using the unstable distribution that some required packages have not yet been created or moved out of Incoming.

Since you only requested a single operation it is extremely likely tghat the package is simply not installable and a bug repiort against that package should be filed.

The following packages have unmet dependencies:
automake1.9: Depends: autoconf(>= 2.58) but it is not going to be installed.
E: Broken packages"

So then I try apt-get install autoconf and get a similar message:

autoconf: Depends: debianutils (>= 1.8)

And I don't think I want to install that, it gives me a bunch of warnings. I tried installing automake manually (i.e. downloading it, untaring, ./configure, make, make install), but it needs autoconf. I tried doing autoconf manually, but it needs something called "m4". I did an apt-get install m4, installed it, but autoconf still says (on doing ./configure) "error: no acceptable m4 could be found in $PATH".

What!!!

Ideas? :(