by Glenys Hanson.
Hi there,
I've installed Xampp on both Windows 7 and Mac Lion and the Standard Moodle Install without any problems. I'm not a techie - just an English teacher. It was pretty easy. Here's a step-by-step tutorial to install Moodle 2.4 on Windows 7. I haven't written one for Mac but it's practically the same. I haven't written one for installing Xampp either - their own instructions are so easy to follow.
I did try Bitnami a few years ago but found it frustrating only to be able to upgrade to the next version when they decided. There were other frustrations too though I don't remember the details now. I am a bit of a control freak so they might not bother you.
Cheers,
Glenys