Got Apache working fine last year on my laptop with XP for local testing of web designs. Downloaded latest version of Apache onto my new desktop, copied over my previous http.conf and hosts. Guess what?
I compared my httpd with the default one and I am sure (!) it's perfect.

Any link from my index page to each of my local websites appears in the address bar OK but the page doesn't change (no html downloaded). If I type localhost/balloonanimals.co.uk (for instance) it does arrive! But images don't because the links such as /images/piccy.gif refer to localhost and not the domain. Somehow Apache isn't working with the hosts file

I know it will be simple (oh - can't see how macaffee firewall can harm it), so forgive my lengthy post but I guess it is staring me in the face.

httpd
****
Listen 127.0.0.1:80
ServerName localhost

DocumentRoot "C:\Documents and Settings\jon\My Documents\webs"
and again
<Directory "C:\Documents and Settings\jon\My Documents\webs">

and
<VirtualHost *>
ServerName http://www.balloonanimals.co.uk
ServerAlias http://www.balloonanimals.co.uk
ServerAdmin webmaster@balloonanimals.co.uk
DocumentRoot "C:/Documents and Settings/jon/My Documents/webs/balloonanimals.co.uk"
ErrorLog logs/balloonanimals.co.uk-error_log
CustomLog logs/balloonanimals.co.uk-access_log combined
UseCanonicalName off
AddHandler server-parsed .shtml
Options FollowSymLinks +Includes
AddType text/html .shtml
AddOutputFilter INCLUDES .shtml
<IfModule mod_ssl.c>
Include conf/ssl.conf
</IfModule>
</VirtualHost>

Hosts
*****
127.0.0.1 localhost aquitaine-style.com http://www.aquitaine-style.com balloonanimals.co.uk http://www.balloonanimals.co.uk (all on one line)

I can't see anything obviously wrong with your config either but I am not really concentrating well these days.

What if anything, are the error logs saying?

__________________
J de Silva
Learning Journal | GIDForums™ | GIDNetwork™ | GIDWebhosts™ | GIDSearch™

They only show that apache is trying! It seems that everything resolves back to localhost.
In browser:
Type localhost. My index page appears - good.
Type the URL with or without www. - index appears (tho address appears in address bar)
Type localhost/www.domain.com - index page again
Type localhost/domain.com - fine!!

It's as if it wasn't reading the hosts file? Yet it works fine on the laptop - only real difference is that it has Norton and not McAfee on it, but I can't see how that's a problem as apache is working!

Further problem of some images not appearing seems to be down to Dreamweaver templates sometimes using /images/gif.gif and sometimes images/gif.gif. You can imagine how confused I've been.