Can't Get Services Running in XP VM - WampServer 2.0i

I am trying to learn PHP and MySQL by going through some of the training I got off of lynda.com.  To follow along with the training I need to install WampServer.  I downloaded WampServer 2.0i and first attempted to install it on the Windows 7 RC I have running in a VMware Workstation 6.5 VM.  It installed without any errors and I unblocked the application when prompted by the Windows firewall.  I started the application when finished and it popped up in the system tray as expected.  However, when I hovered over the icon it said ONLY "Server Offline" instead of "Server Offline - All Services Running."  I then uninstalled the app, turned UAC off and reinstalled; same problem.  I figured it was a compatibility error with WIndows 7 RC, so I tried installing the same ver of WampServer on an XP SP3 VM.  I am having the exact same problem - can't get the the Apache, PHP, and MySQL services running.  WTH?

I really need to learn PHP and MySQL and I appreciate any and all help ya'll might be able to provide.  Times are tough and I need to equip myself with as many tools as possible to get ahead.  I have someone who'd like me to build them a small-scale DB driven website and this seems like what I need to learn.