i recently just got a new laptop as a gift would like to edit on it but it does not have a firewire port or express card slot (i shoot with an fx1). i saw a firewire to usb cable, would that work? or anything else i can use?

I'd very very wary of that. I wanted to do the same with my DVX100. I connected a firewire to USB cable and it blew the firewire port on the camera dead as a doornail.

wow.. well thanks for the heads up. i might not being trying this one.