apt-get dependencies issue

["Justin C. Lloyd" <jlloyd1@cox.rr.com>]

I've just switched over to using a self-built sendmail configuration.
In order to get this to work, I first had to force a removal of exim,
and therefore of the mail-transport-agent virtual package.  Now, I
can't upgrade:

hyperion:~# apt-get -u dist-upgrade
Reading Package Lists... Done
Building Dependency Tree... Done
You might want to run `apt-get -f install' to correct these.
Sorry, but the following packages have unmet dependencies:
  at: Depends: mail-transport-agent
  mailx: Depends: exim but it is not installed or
                  mail-transport-agent
E: Unmet dependencies. Try using -f.


What is the proper way, other than using a standard Debian package, of
handling these situtations?  I have this same sort of issue with
building my own perl, but that's another can of worms...

-jcl-


------------------------------------------------------------------------
Justin C. Lloyd
jlloyd1@cox.rr.com