5.5.2 DCT error with inline statement

System

I have an inline command with which I am trying to pull a dynamic dropdown list from a flat file. While the .ipl file to create the well-formed dropdown list from the text file works from the command line, I get the following error when I try to call the .ipl file from the DCT:

Templating Error Page
A problem was encountered trying to parse the datacapture.cfg file for type apps/newstool-soco.


The .ipl file does not require an input parameter yet - I am trying to get it to work without one first. So, when I run the .ipl file from the command line, I get the following output:
<substitution>
<OPTION VALUE=" cat1" label="cat1" />
<OPTION VALUE=" cat2" label="cat2" />
</substitution>

However, when I try to run the .ipl file from the template, I get the error I listed above. Here's the code I'm using in the template:
<item name="dropdown">
<description>blah</description>
<select>
<inline command="/iw-perl/bin/iw-perl.exe /iw-bin/selection_list_inline.ipl"/>
</select>
</item>

I also tried it without the iw-perl call…I had tried that based on another post's suggestion. Also, the permissions on the .ipl file give everyone full control, so I don't think it's a permissions problem as I saw in another thread.

I have tried everything I can think of and I am completely at a loss. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. We are on Win2K server and 5.5.2 SP3.

Thanks-