i accidentally edited the /etc/apt/sources.lst file and now it is as follows..

#
deb cdrom:[Debian GNU/Linux 4.0 r0 _Etch_ - Official i386 DVD Binary-1 20070407-11:40]/ etch contrib main

deb cdrom:[Debian GNU/Linux 4.0 r0 _Etch_ - Official i386 DVD Binary-3 20070407-11:40]/ etch contrib main
deb cdrom:[Debian GNU/Linux 4.0 r0 _Etch_ - Official i386 DVD Binary-2 20070407-11:40]/ etch contrib main
deb cdrom:[Debian GNU/Linux 4.0 r0 _Etch_ - Official i386 DVD Binary-1 20070407-11:40]/ etch contrib main
deb-src http://security.debian.org/ etch/updates main contrib

deb http://http.us.debian.org/debian/ etch main

deb http://security.debian.org/debian-security etch/updates main contrib non-free

deb http://security.debian.org/debian-security sarge/updates main

deb http://http.us.debian.org/debian/ sarge main
deb http://ftp.debian.org/debian unstable

now when i open the synaptic package manager i get the following message :_

E: Malformed line 16 in source list /etc/apt/sources.list (dist parse)
E: The list of sources could not be read.
Go to the repository dialog to correct the problem.


could any one tell me wat the original file should look like and how i can get the synaptic package manager to get working again??
i am using Debian etch and have been using kde..if tat is needed

Errors like this are the reason why its encouraged to backup any important files before editing them. Tools that may help you get a working /etc/apt/sources.list are apt-select and netselect-apt. I also noticed that you are mixing sarge, etch and unstable repos. Do you really need any packages from sarge and unstable on your etch box?

On a side note, please use thread titles that describe your problem instead of "urgent", "help" etc. This increases the exposure of your thread and gives others an idea about the contents of your thread. Marking threads as urgent is discouraged because all threads are treated equal and will get a response when one of the volunteers can answer your question.

i donno ...about tat ..i had edited the files many times seeing instructions on many sites to install various softwares...could u help me how to restore my system to previous state???i cant do anything with my synaptic package manageer

I would delete the lines for sarge and unstable from /etc/apt/sources.list and then run "apt-get update" as root. If you keep having problems, then run apt-select or netselect-apt and you should be able to choose a fresh list of mirrors.

yeah tat solved the problem..thank you very much for the timely help..and i am sorry about the description of the thread..i'll try to be more descriptive and varefull in future..