HI,
By serial I assume you talking about RS-232. If you're instrument has a RS-232 it really doesn't matter what PC you're using, the serial interface is the same.
To access the serial port it really depends on what programming enviroment you are using or planning to use.
The following link has more information on getting started with serial communication.
http://www.ni.com/support/serlsupp.htm
DiegoF