Is this link on the java.com or Oracle site, or is it in a dialog in Firefox? Could you describe the steps to re-create the error?

Also, you may want to try doing the update from the Windows Control Panel, Java widget.

Did you check the setting in the Java Control Panel (Advanced) to see which command is used to launch the default browser?

when an update is necessary an icon appears in the bottom bar (task bar), and I click on the icon to begin viewing it. When it has downloaded the install box appears with "terms of service". When I attempt to click on this is when the "browser launch error: 193" appears, and I cannot read the "terms of service" (or similar statement). The small box indicating the "browser launch error" pops up in the middle of the larger screen for downloading. This has only occurred since the last 2 (or 3) Firefox updates, so wondering if the updates are related to this(?). Never had this problem previously with the Java updates. I am bewildered by this, and the inability to read the "terms of service" (or similar statement). Because it states that you accept the terms of service, however without reading it, a user does not know what it says. Thank you both for your recommendations.