Longarm quilters? Advice Needed

I've had a time tonight with my quilting machine. The thread kept breaking. After doing all the things to try to fix it, I finally realized that as I was changing the needle (one of the things to do when the thread breaks) I put it in wrong. I fixed that and thought well, maybe, it is going to work. Nope. After only about 6 inches of quilting, it started skipping stitches. The book suggests adjusting the timing. Hummm....not something I want to start on my own without at least some advice. Anyone?? I did write my dealer and even sent her a picture of what the stitching looked like. Maybe she will respond in a day or two.