First time user, my computer is connected to laser via usb cable, put in first design and press start button and I get a message saying there is a problem sending data or laser is busy or paused.
What am I missing? Thanks in advance.
In console window type in $$ then enter and paste output, please.
What do you mean by type $$ on the console window if you are using your laptop
Here.

What com port are you using?
Possibly an easy thing to try is to replace the USB cable with a known high quality cable fitted with a ferrite bead. While its always best to start with a systematic fault finding process, starting with the $$ output as above, this can be a quick way of eliminating one possibility - the cheap usb cables supplied with hobby machines are often less than ideal.
im having this same issue , i tried changing usb cables, unistalling and reinstalling the software but still to no avail, at some point it connects to cut, but when i send datato cut and engrave this error pops up and the machine doesnt cut at all . at thismoment im stressed. can some one please help me.