[ubuntu-uk] permission

[Sean Miller]

As Stephen said, you should be doing "sudo make install" then entering
your account password when requested: that should do it

But one thing I will mention.  Installing from source is often not
necessary.  You should run Synaptic Package Manager (System ->
Administration) in the first instance and see whether the software you
require is actually in the Ubuntu repositories.  There are a couple of
advantages to this: the install is guaranteed to be successful with
just a couple of clicks; and Ubuntu will know that you have the thing
installed and you will be informed if important updates are available
automatically.

Sean