[Pkg-db-devel] Bug#258851: libdb4.0: can't uninstall?

[Jayen Ashar]

Package: libdb4.0
Version: 4.0.14-2
Severity: normal

trying to remove this package with "apt-get remove libdb4.0" gives me the following output:
-----------------------------
Reading Package Lists... Done
Building Dependency Tree... Done
Some packages could not be installed. This may mean that you have
requested an impossible situation or if you are using the unstable
distribution that some required packages have not yet been created
or been moved out of Incoming.

Since you only requested a single operation it is extremely likely that
the package is simply not installable and a bug report against
that package should be filed.
The following information may help to resolve the situation:

The following packages have unmet dependencies:
  xlibs: Depends: libxft1 but it is not going to be installed
E: Broken packages
------------------

Oddity 1: I can remove other packages.  "apt-get remove --purge libdb4.2" gives me:
-----------------------------
Reading Package Lists... Done
Building Dependency Tree... Done
The following packages will be REMOVED:
  apache* apache-common* apache-ssl* apache-utils* apt-utils* bug* gallery*
  libdb4.2* php4* php4-cgi* php4-mysql* php4-pear* python* python2.3*
  python2.3-iconvcodec* reportbug*
0 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 16 to remove and 2 not upgraded.
Need to get 0B of archives.
After unpacking 43.8MB disk space will be freed.
Do you want to continue? [Y/n] 
-----------------------------

Oddity 2: xlibs and libxft1 are installed (and up-to-date with testing), so I don't understand the error message. "xlibs: Depends: libxft1 but it is not going to be installed"

This problem is probably not specific to this package, but I can't find any other packages giving me this problem.


-- System Information:
Debian Release: testing/unstable
  APT prefers testing
  APT policy: (500, 'testing')
Architecture: i386 (i586)
Kernel: Linux 2.4.17
Locale: LANG=C, LC_CTYPE=C

Versions of packages libdb4.0 depends on:
ii  libc6                       2.3.2.ds1-13 GNU C Library: Shared libraries an

-- no debconf information