Best to remove previous java versions. Java can be really fussy & problematic. And yours sounds like a java issue. Did you try deleting the LW prefs folder? Fixes for Limewire

Almost forgot, your version will most likely have the repair option. You could always try that also. LW now uses a totally different type of installer so the add/remove control panel does not apply & in fact if you use that on the newer versions you will cause problems.