diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index 457f9036a..170282190 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -1,4 +1,3 @@
-# Please edit Makefile.in rather than Makefile, which is overwritten by ../configure.
 PREFIX=/usr/local
 INSTALLDIR=$(PREFIX)/bin
 
@@ -17,11 +16,11 @@ check:
 	go test -v
 
 install: build
-	cp mlr $(INSTALLDIR)
+	cp mlr $(DESTDIR)/$(INSTALLDIR)
 	make -C man install
 
 fmt:
-	go fmt ./...
+	-go fmt ./...
 
 # For developers before pushing to GitHub.
 #
diff --git a/configure b/configure
index 371f9903b..e6e7dbb73 100755
--- a/configure
+++ b/configure
@@ -2,26 +2,46 @@
 
 usage() {
   echo "Usage: $0 [--prefix {prefix directory}], e.g. /usr/local" 2>&1
+  echo "    or $0 [--prefix={prefix directory}], e.g. /usr/local" 2>&1
   exit 1
 }
 
 prefix="/usr/local"
+
 if [ $# -eq 0 ]; then
   echo "Using $prefix"
-elif [ $# -ne 2 ]; then
+elif [ $# -gt 2 ]; then
   usage
 else
-  if [ "$1" != "--prefix" ]; then
-    usage
-  fi
-  # Test for read access, not write access, since people can ./configure, make,
-  # and make check outside of sudo and then make install inside sudo.
-  prefix="$2"
-  if [ ! -d "$prefix" ]; then
-    echo "$0: could not find prefix directory \"$prefix\""
-    exit 1
-  fi
+  while [ $# -gt 0 ]; do
+    case "$1" in
+      -p=* | --prefix=*)
+        prefix="${1#*=}"
+        ;;
+      -p | --prefix)
+        prefix="$2"
+        shift
+        ;;
+      *)
+        printf "Error: unknown option: $1\n"
+        usage
+    esac
+    shift
+  done
+fi
+
+# Test for read access, not write access, since people can ./configure, make,
+# and make check outside of sudo and then make install inside sudo.
+if [ ! -d "$prefix" ]; then
+  echo "$0: could not find prefix directory \"$prefix\""
+  exit 1
 fi
 
 sed -I .prefix-backup 's@^PREFIX.*@PREFIX='$prefix'@' Makefile
+rm Makefile.prefix-backup
+echo Updated Makefile
+
 sed -I .prefix-backup 's@^PREFIX.*@PREFIX='$prefix'@' man/Makefile
+rm man/Makefile.prefix-backup
+echo Updated man/Makefile
+
diff --git a/man/Makefile b/man/Makefile
index c2d9d99f3..bfa8270c4 100644
--- a/man/Makefile
+++ b/man/Makefile
@@ -1,5 +1,3 @@
-# Please edit Makefile.in rather than Makefile, which is overwritten by ../configure.
-#
 # Respective MANPATH entries would include /usr/local/share/man or $HOME/man.
 # This should be run after make in the ../c directory but before make in the ../docs directory,
 # since ../go/mlr is used to autogenerate ./manpage.txt which is used in ../docs.
@@ -12,7 +10,7 @@ INSTALLDIR=$(PREFIX)/share/man/man1
 # needing only to be copied to its install dir.
 # Copying to man1/mlr1 is so that you can then put the Miller dir in your
 # $MANPATH and do "man mlr".
-build: .always
+build:
 	echo mkman start
 	./mkman.rb > mlr.1
 	./mkman.rb | groff -man -Tascii | col -b | expand -8 > manpage.txt
@@ -22,10 +20,8 @@ build: .always
 	cp mlr.1 ./man1
 
 install:
-	mkdir -p $(INSTALLDIR)
-	cp mlr.1 $(INSTALLDIR)/mlr.1
-
+	mkdir -p $(DESTDIR)/$(INSTALLDIR)
+	cp mlr.1 $(DESTDIR)/$(INSTALLDIR)/mlr.1
 
 # ----------------------------------------------------------------
-.always:
-	true
+.PHONY: build install
diff --git a/todo.txt b/todo.txt
index 1990bb9f9..389eee4f3 100644
--- a/todo.txt
+++ b/todo.txt
@@ -3,20 +3,16 @@ PUNCHDOWN LIST
 
 * plan:
   o release prep
-    k ./configure experiment
-    k miller.spec experiment
-    k 'make release_tarball'
-    o update build.mi#dev steps
     o man & docs use (export PATH ...) base/mlr
+    o local phi/mh -> ~/g/j/m; m6 redirect to rtd -- ?
+    o DESTDIR doc ... + https://www.gnu.org/prep/standards/html_node/DESTDIR.html
     o miller/mlr ... try skitt:
       - cmd/layout -- ?
       - go install github.com/johnkerl/miller/cmd/mlr
       - go build {what goes here?}
+    o make an open issue for the maybe-rename -- ?
   o conda etc
     - get a conda link for rmd
-    - distcheck: gtar --transform 's,^./,miller-6.0.0/,' --exclude ./.git -czf /tmp/miller-6.0.0.tgz .
-      > also exclude: data, docs, experiments, per, python, vim
-      > on macos, 'brew install gnu-tar' will install 'gtar'
   o blockers:
     - fractional-strptime
     - cmp-matrices