[AlmosN8kd]

I know this may seem somewhat basic for this thread but I didn't find much help searching the forums or the thread or searching AEM's forum. Anyhow, I cannot get my laptop to connect to my EMS. I've read all the information in the user's guide as well as what info I could find online and yet it will not connect. Am I missing a step somewhere along the way? Is my EMS bad?

Here's some basic info:
Old laptop, Pentium 933 running windows XP.
Serial port is COM2 (COM1 is not available on my computer for some reason)

Tried connecting via the serial port and would get nothing but the querying box while saying the ECU is offline.

Then, I purchased and tried a USB to serial adapter cable (not a Belkin) which has had no luck. I tried going through it as a USB cable which just quickly gives me an error saying saying something to the effect of unable to connect or ECU is offline (I don't remember exactly what it said). I also tried going through the adapter as COM5 as that is what it was installed as. This has even more fatal results. It queries for a few seconds and then gives me the blue screen of death.

I have since gone back to trying to use COM2 but now it doesn't even give me the constant query anymore. Now it just gives me the error of being unable to connect shortly after trying to connect.

I have tried every thing I can think of and have yet to get it to connect so that I can get my car running now that I've installed the EMS. Obviously there has to be something I am doing wrong or there is something wrong with my computer. So, does anyone have some info that may help? I tried calling AEM tech support but all I got was thier answering machine (it was about 30mins before closing time on a 3 day weekend so that may be why).