Ford Repair: How can I diagnose wether my EGR is functionin, barge trip, jumper wire

Question
I have an 88 4x4 f-150 with a 6 cylinder engine in it.  I parked it for two weeks while I was away on a trip.  It ran good when I parked it, when I got home it ran very rough, like the choke was stuck on.  Obviously it doesn't have a choke so that's not the problem.  I replaced the plugs wires and cap and rotor, and that didn't change anything.  Cleaned the air filter, that didn't change anything.  I'm not much of a mechanic so I had someone who is come look at it.  Unfortunantly he hasn't worked with fuel injection at all, so he was only able to help me be sure that the timing was not messed up.  He said that it was possible that the EGR was not functioning.  Does that sound like a possibility to you?  Is there an easy way to test that?  I live in a place that the nearest shop with diagnostic equipment is a barge trip away, so that is not really an option.  Or anything else that I could test fairly easily?  Thanks so much for your time.
Jake

Answer
You can test the computer yourself. The diagnostic port is under the hood, and with a jumper wire, all you do is count how many times the check engine light blinks. Further instructions can be found in the back of a haynes manual. The codes should indicate id it is a EGR failure, or a MAP sensor.