Win98, 1.4.0_01: 'installation support file ... interface' problem

Question

When installing Java 1.4.0_01 under Windows 98 through the self-extracting executable (both the international and non-international runtime environments, and the SDK) I get the following error message (soon after the splash screen appears; right after files are checked and unpacked):
'An installation support file could not be installed. Interfaz no registrada [Non registered interface?]'
Following the installation guide I went to InstalShield's support page and checklisted through article Q104985 without success (only thing I couldn't do was execute DCOMCNFG because of some issue regarding user level security but I don't expect the problem to lie there). JRE version 1.3.1_03 installs correctly, so I am not in a great hurry, since I don't expect to run state of the art programs in the Pentium 166 I am setting up, but it would be a relief if anyone could enlighten me about potential ways of solving the issue. Thank you.
Gonzalo Higuera.

Answer 1

I have solved the problem I asked about at the top of the thread, but not the way I would have liked to: my conclusion is that it was because of an unstable operating system installation, but that still leaves open the reasons why the installation failed (specially when the older version installed without problems) and whether there was any alternative to this extreme procedure.
The way I fought the problem was by doing a clean reinstallation (formatting the system and all). The reasons why I did this were twofold:
1.- I had just begun setting up the system, so starting from scratch was only mildly painfull.
2.- I had installed Internet Explorer 6 with the default options and that had brought Outlook Express into the system. Preferring other mail clients (and admittedly, somewhat scared by the security risks it might pose if it were to be used) I decided to uninstall it (after the problem with the JRE). Bad idea: after bootup there was a registry warning and a couple of blue screens and resets afterwards I found that half of the configuration had gone astray and that there were obvious malfunctions (for instance, the Explorer did not show any longer the directory tree although View->Explorer Bar->Folders was selected).
Gonzalo Higuera.
When reinstalling Windows 98 I decided to take the 'Personal' installation, as usual, but after seeing the behaviour of the system when uninstalling Outlook I decided to include it in the installation from the very beginning. Miraculous! A registry issue I had had while installing Windows dissappeared, when installing drivers it no longer defaulted to saying my CD-ROM was on some obscure folder in the hard drive, and some other minor issues dissappeared.
After that I installed some other software before attempting to try the 1.4.0_03 JRE, but I think I did it in the same order as with the prior installation, so it seems to me that the absence of Outlook Express (even if it is an optional element during the installation of Windows and of Internet Explorer updates) caused some inner misconfigurations which ended with the problem described at the beginning of the thread. Thus, I recommend the complete installation of the Internet Explorer + Outlook Express bundle, even if it is not going to be used. I doubt that their presence is necessary for the proper functioning of other applications, but my experience has taught me that the faulty installation procedure of these products can have fatal consecuences on the stability of the system.