Serial in VB 5 - How?

At the risk of a silly question...

How does one obtain serial data in VB 5?

And does one need to set baud and parity before data is received, or can one obtain data and then interpret it at different bauds and parities to determine which gives clear text?

I didn't see this topic in recent threads of FAQs, hence the question. Sorry if it's already been hashed to death.