Problem caused by class software?

Ever since I installed the Java (from the link provided on the BIT page) on my laptop my IE has been freezing up a lot in the midst of loading pages, where the only way to un-freeze it is the ctrl-alt-del...IE stinks and I'm definitely making the swtich the Mozilla soon, but this is still really annoying and I'm wondering if it's just a coincidence or if something with the Java is causing this problem, because it has definitely been a noticeable increase in IE problems for me since around the time I installed that Java...