Oops, can't comment yet (!) but re: Nick and logic analyser, beware: RS232 signal levels not typically Logic Analyser compatible unless you get/make a special serial probe. A 'proper' RS232/Serial port can use +/-12v swings (on all signals) and sometimes more. A laptop sometimes uses 0-5v swings (and often won't work with real serial interfaces) so could work with a vbasic 'ttl-level' LA interface.
