Maybe the IT support group should install the Java Plug-In on all the systems, as part of their base software deployment & configuration (do they use SMS, WinInstall, Ghost, etc.?) so the users don't have to do it themselves (and maybe screw it up), and so they could make sure the right version is properly installed, etc.

It is always a tension in enterprise IT support, between needing to control things to provide a safe & stable base environment for the vast majority of regular users, but also finding a way to accomodate the unusual groups of users (developers, special departments & projects etc.) who need additional things, different configurations, working environments, applications etc., beyond the majority.

I've been on both sides of the fence so I can see both sides of the arguments, trade-offs, complications, etc. (a sign of getting too old, I can't say black or white Yes or No anymore, it's all complicated coupled interconnected shades of grey...)