I'd like to acknowledge and thank Gavin Jacobs, whose list of advocated applications includes various Javas, for his help in resolving my problems getting a Java Runtime Environment (JRE) going for OpenOffice 4. Because OO 4 is compatible with Windows 8, my OO 4 installation was to a Windows 7 bottle. I tried various Java installations to the bottle, but they weren't entirely successful.
To save time, before my most recent attempt to install Java, I changed the botttle type to Windows XP (using CrossOver's Configure | Manage Bottles... | Control Panel | Wine Configuration | Launch Selected Item | Applications | Windows Version and clicking Apply). I didn't think to simulate a reboot, and it's possible that if I'd done so, my experience would have been better. In any case, when I subsequently began to install software, selecting first Java 7 then Java 6 then Java 6 Update 24, each time the installer window indicated that Java was incompatible with the type of bottle. With nothing to lose, I reselected Java 7 and clicked Install.
Since Java now appeared in the bottle's Control Panel items, I knew that I'd made some progress, and the item launched. I restarted Base (OO 4's database app), used Tools | Options | Java, and saw that Base was able to detect that there was a JRE installed. This was an encouraging first! <g>
If you have difficulty getting OO 4 functioning fully, try changing your bottle type to Windows XP.
