the `./configure` often tests edge-cases from the 90s and early 2000s, that are not relevant anymore, but everyone is afraid to touch any of that. ...because a

the `./configure` often tests edge-cases from the 90s and early 2000s, that are not relevant anymore, but everyone is afraid to touch any of that. ...because almost nobody can really write any code in M4sh (M4 with bash spliced together) and other odd languages. Really, the e-mail from the actual link is surprisingly sober and calls out the weaknesses of autotools well.