Compiling to a binary?

I have a question that I have googled before but I still can not find a solid answer.
Say I downloaded a source code package for a program. It says that the following cod can be compiled and run on Linux and OS X. The software comes with instructions to first run the command "configure" and then the command "make".
Ok, so, I get to the right directory, run the configure command. That works fine, or at least I think so. Then I run the command "make" but that returns an error that the following command is not valid.
What do I do? How do I compile the source code into a binary that I can dump into my applications folder?

Thank you beforehand

sounds like you might need to be typing that all in x11, and def make sure you are at the right folder location

Have you installed Apple's development tools? They come with your system, but you can download the latest one from Apple if you create a free developer user account.

No duplicate thread per rule 2.

See the thread below for farer suggestions or comments.

http://www.mac-forums.com/forums/showthread.php?p=198429#post198429