Issue moving WordPress to local host with MAMP

Looking for help moving WordPress from live host to local host utilizing MAMP.

I have followed directions on how to move WordPress from several sources (including Codex) and am not having any luck. So far, each method results in a broken or incomplete site.

My sources:
http://codex.wordpress.org/Moving_WordPress#Moving_WordPress_to_a_New_Server
http://egalo.com/2012/05/15/clone-live-wordpress-to-local-env
http://www.premiumwebbloghosting.com/2012/07/moving-wordpress-from-hosting-to-localhost.html

What I am trying to do, is move my live site “http://www.livesitename.com” to “http://www.livesitenamedev.com” on my local host. I intend to develop an extensive child theme on the local side and then upload it to my live host.

As far as I can tell, the issue may have something to do with importing and reconfiguring the database in MAMP and/or configuring wp-config.php. I am also uncertain of how to update urls and links.

I am obviously new to this process and hoping someone can explain this in simple terms or direct me to a tutorial that works. Note: I am aware of plugins that simplify moving WordPress, updating urls, etc., although I wish to understand this from a developer’s perspective.

Thanks

[Please stick with just one thread per topic – http://wordpress.org/support/topic/issue-moving-wordpress-to-local-host-with-mamp-1?replies=1 ; the other forum gets more traffic so I left it there ]