cmake is not a makefile reinvention! Like GNU automake, it generates makefiles (or input files for VisualC/XCode). It configures the build for the specific target system, and library versions and locations.

I know that :) But if one thinks Makefiles are complex with ugly syntax, CMake will be a revelation (more complex, uglier syntax)

Yo dawg, I heard you like makefiles, so we made makefiles for your makefiles...