EMC10T help needed

I have a 95 Melco EMC10T. I am looking to get it up and running. I also have an old computer with it with the EDS3 software on it.

I'm looking to see what my options are. I have all the original EDS3 discs and dongle. Can I put this on a different computer? I don't think you can install it on a windows 7/8 computer, but could I get an older Windows XP laptop and put it on there. Then transfer artwork to it via a USB drive? I'm not sure which Windows OS' it will work on. Does the dongle just plug into any parallel port, or does there need to be a network card installed on the computer as well?

I also understand you can connect the machine straight to any computer via the ethernet cable. If I did this what software would I need on that computer to communicate with it?

I am completely new to embroidery so any help I can get would be greatly appreciated. Once this is up and running I will be having a tech come into to give the machine a tune-up (oil/tension/etc). But would love to have half an idea of what I'm doing before he gets here.

Thanks in advance!