build fails: missing ./etc directory, then "no rule to make target `install`"

[José Ruiz <ja_rd at hotmail dot com>]

Hello,

I am trying to build newlib 1.19 on a Kubuntu 11.4 machine (gcc version 4.5.2) for a MIPS target.?I am trying to follow the instructions found in the newlib site, the included 'readme' file and elsewhere, and the build fails with a make error.
Here's exactly what I do:
> tar xzvf newlib-1.19.0.tar.gz?> mkdir newlib-build> cd newlib-build> ../newlib-1.19.0/configure --prefix=`pwd` --target=mips

<leading lines of output clipped>...checking where to find the target windmc... pre-installedchecking whether to enable maintainer-specific portions of Makefiles... nochecking whether -fkeep-inline-functions is supported... yesconfigure: creating ./config.statusconfig.status: creating Makefile
(There's no error there that I can see, and a Makefile is generated on newlib-build)
> make install
make[1]: Entering directory `/home/jaruiz/dev/mips/newlib/newlib-build'/bin/bash ../newlib-1.19.0/mkinstalldirs /home/jaruiz/dev/mips/newlib/newlib-build /home/jaruiz/dev/mips/newlib/newlib-build/bin/bash: line 3: cd: ./etc: No such file or directorymake[1]: *** [install-etc] Error 1make[1]: Leaving directory `/home/jaruiz/dev/mips/newlib/newlib-build'make: *** [install] Error 2
(Ok, I then go on to create the etc directory though I already suspect there is something wrong somewhere...)
> mkdir etc> make install
make[1]: Entering directory `/home/jaruiz/dev/mips/newlib/newlib-build'/bin/bash ../newlib-1.19.0/mkinstalldirs /home/jaruiz/dev/mips/newlib/newlib-build /home/jaruiz/dev/mips/newlib/newlib-buildmake[2]: Entering directory `/home/jaruiz/dev/mips/newlib/newlib-build/etc'make[2]: *** No rule to make target `install'. ?Stop.make[2]: Leaving directory `/home/jaruiz/dev/mips/newlib/newlib-build/etc'make[1]: *** [install-etc] Error 2make[1]: Leaving directory `/home/jaruiz/dev/mips/newlib/newlib-build'make: *** [install] Error 2

That's the error I get. I am a newbie in linux development and though I have used make before, frankly I can't make head or tails of any of that.The generated makefile is ~350KB long and is insanely convoluted. I seems to contain an 'install' target but I have no idea what may be wrong with it, if anything. Here's a snippet:
....# Installation targets.
.PHONY: install uninstallinstall:	@: $(MAKE); $(unstage)	@r=`${PWD_COMMAND}`; export r; \	s=`cd $(srcdir); ${PWD_COMMAND}`; export s; \	$(MAKE) $(RECURSE_FLAGS_TO_PASS) installdirs install-host install-target
.PHONY: install-host-nogcc.....
I don't think my local compiler is at fault here; I have built buildroot and some other applications on this machine without any problem.
If there is some comprehensive documentation somewhere, or someone can kindly point me in the right direction, I would greatly appreciate it.I hope that I have missed something obvious and this will turn out to be a silly question...
This situation where there's absolutely nothing I can do except beg for help in a forum is extremely frustrating :) again, if you can point me to relevant documentation (i.e. directly applicable to newlib on mips and not general docs for autoconf) I will not hesitate to study hundreds of pages if necessary.

I miss my Keil tools :)
Thanks!