ok so.... I know all hope is not lost but, I just FINALLY, got the computer ot communicate with the arduino correctly. I found that the USB 3.0 ports are not as legacy as they seem. Found a USB 2.0 port and POOF, it uploads. Now, I need to rumage through the files and set it to use the LCD interface. I dont think I set it up to use the Z probe either.
Currently, I am going through the videos from Makerfarm so that I can learn at least a little bit.