Help! I can't update my linux install

I use linux (Ubuntu) and KDE. When I open adept, the package manager, I get a message saying the package database is locked and I can't make any changes. The problem wasn't resolved when I restarted. I did a google search for the words "ubuntu", "adept", and "lock". I found this thread on the problem that contains a command to restart the stuck install that was causing the problem.

The command is:

dpkg --configure -a

You might need to prepend sudo