Here's the brief scenario:
- I created an ISLE install; it included a couple of OCXes (treeview, listview, and Forms.2 scrollbar).
- I ran the install on another machine (daughter's), through the network
- it went fine
- I told her to uninstall, but since I made a mistake (the package was named "Default", because I didn't put any name there; I thought this had the meaning of "use the same name as product name"...) she didn't find it in the Add/remove programs list (both machines are W2K SP2). She deleted the directories where the stuff was installed.
- next time she tried to use IE (a week and a dozen reboots later - Mozilla is the browser of choice here), it launched the Windows Installer and started looking for the original install files of my app.
- eventually we uninstalled the stuff from the Add/Remove applet and it stopped.

Now the big question: what the hell has my app to do with Internet Explorer, and what does it care? What sort of behind-the-scenes behavior is this? Is IE just a browser, or some monstrous Big Brother installation policeman... oopps, policeperson?

I've noticed this sort of automatic reinstall with Outlook Express and NetMeeting; there's no regular way to uninstall them, they keep reinstalling automatically each time you delete them. At least my app is listed in the Add/Remove list and can be removed like a decent app should.

P.S. I have found a way to kill Outlook Express (and it should work with NetMeeting as well), but I don't want to make a business out of it.