for the past month (or so) whenever I apt-get something it runs through everything and then as it is configuring it tells me there are some packages it doesn't like. So tonight I figured I would do something about it. So I go into a terminal and do 'apt-get update'. It does its thing and then says there are problems and to run 'sudo dpkg --configure -a' to take care of the problem. So I do and afterwards open synaptic up and try to remove the programs that are being a pain. Synaptic does its thing and removes one of the four programs that I'm having trouble with. So then I close synaptic and try apt-get update again. apt  completes the command successfully so the next thing done is 'apt-get upgrade'. Those 3 pesky programs! They will not go away. They do not let it complete the upgrade. Well, they let it install everything but the removal is not completed. I don't even know from whence they came. I don't think I d/l them.
--
:-)~MIKE~(-:

bmike1@Michaels-PC:~$ sudo apt-get upgrade
Reading package lists... Done
Building dependency tree      
Reading state information... Done
The following packages will be REMOVED:
  linux-image-3.0.0-15-generic linux-image-3.0.0-16-generic
  linux-image-3.0.0-17-generic
The following packages will be upgraded:
  ca-certificates-java
1 upgraded, 0 newly installed, 3 to remove and 0 not upgraded.
3 not fully installed or removed.
Need to get 8,398 B of archives.
After this operation, 351 MB disk space will be freed.
Do you want to continue [Y/n]?
Get:1 http://us.archive.ubuntu.com/ubuntu/ oneiric-updates/main ca-certificates-java all 20110912ubuntu3.1 [8,398 B]
Fetched 8,398 B in 0s (10.4 kB/s)        
(Reading database ... 248386 files and directories currently installed.)
Removing linux-image-3.0.0-15-generic ...
Examining /etc/kernel/postrm.d .
run-parts: executing /etc/kernel/postrm.d/initramfs-tools 3.0.0-15-generic /boot/vmlinuz-3.0.0-15-generic
update-initramfs: Deleting /boot/initrd.img-3.0.0-15-generic
run-parts: executing /etc/kernel/postrm.d/zz-update-grub 3.0.0-15-generic /boot/vmlinuz-3.0.0-15-generic
/etc/default/grub: 1: GNU: not found
run-parts: /etc/kernel/postrm.d/zz-update-grub exited with return code 127
Failed to process /etc/kernel/postrm.d at /var/lib/dpkg/info/linux-image-3.0.0-15-generic.postrm line 328.
dpkg: error processing linux-image-3.0.0-15-generic (--remove):
 subprocess installed post-removal script returned error exit status 1
Removing linux-image-3.0.0-16-generic ...
Examining /etc/kernel/postrm.d .
run-parts: executing /etc/kernel/postrm.d/initramfs-tools 3.0.0-16-generic /boot/vmlinuz-3.0.0-16-generic
update-initramfs: Deleting /boot/initrd.img-3.0.0-16-generic
run-parts: executing /etc/kernel/postrm.d/zz-update-grub 3.0.0-16-generic /boot/vmlinuz-3.0.0-16-generic
/etc/default/grub: 1: GNU: not found
run-parts: /etc/kernel/postrm.d/zz-update-grub exited with return code 127
Failed to process /etc/kernel/postrm.d at /var/lib/dpkg/info/linux-image-3.0.0-16-generic.postrm line 328.
dpkg: error processing linux-image-3.0.0-16-generic (--remove):
 subprocess installed post-removal script returned error exit status 1
Removing linux-image-3.0.0-17-generic ...
Examining /etc/kernel/postrm.d .
run-parts: executing /etc/kernel/postrm.d/initramfs-tools 3.0.0-17-generic /boot/vmlinuz-3.0.0-17-generic
update-initramfs: Deleting /boot/initrd.img-3.0.0-17-generic
run-parts: executing /etc/kernel/postrm.d/zz-update-grub 3.0.0-17-generic /boot/vmlinuz-3.0.0-17-generic
/etc/default/grub: 1: GNU: not found
run-parts: /etc/kernel/postrm.d/zz-update-grub exited with return code 127
Failed to process /etc/kernel/postrm.d at /var/lib/dpkg/info/linux-image-3.0.0-17-generic.postrm line 328.
dpkg: error processing linux-image-3.0.0-17-generic (--remove):
 subprocess installed post-removal script returned error exit status 1
Errors were encountered while processing:
 linux-image-3.0.0-15-generic
 linux-image-3.0.0-16-generic
 linux-image-3.0.0-17-generic
E: Sub-process /usr/bin/dpkg returned an error code (1)
bmike1@Michaels-PC:~$ uname -a
Linux Michaels-PC 3.0.0-14-generic #23-Ubuntu SMP Mon Nov 21 20:34:47 UTC 2011 i686 i686 i386 GNU/Linux
bmike1@Michaels-PC:~$