Unable to make python work properly

[Benjamin Grant]

Hi all,
I'd greatly appreciate any help.  I can configure, make and install
everything fine.  I'm using python 2.4  I have ubuntu dapper drake. I am
trying to install hplip which requires python.  When I do this, this
also works but while running the following error occurs:
Traceback (most recent call last):
  File "/usr/local/bin/hp-setup", line 31, in ?
    import readline, gzip
ImportError: No module named readline




It appears as though for some reaosn the readline module is not being
installed on my system.  Also, it doesn't really seem like python could
possibly be being installed correctly.  If I go to python tools and try
to run ./listmodules I get the following error:


> File "/usr/lib/python2.4/doc/tools/listmodules", line 183, in ?
>     main()
>   File "/usr/lib/python2.4/doc/tools/listmodules", line 119, in main
>     os.chdir("Modules")
> OSError: [Errno 2] No such file or directory: 'Modules'
> 
> 
Any tool i try to run in the python/doc folder gives me error messages.  Any thoughts on why
this is not working at all? I'd gladly erase everything w/ regards to python
and start over if that would help, but i'm unsure how to do that. Thanks for the help
Ben