Hi Termi,
Laurie's designer here. I created the CD on a Mac, so... Yes, the disc works on a Mac, and it does not have to stay in the computer. When you dragged the patterns folder to your documents folder, did you give it a minute or two to download the files from the CD to the Documents folder?
That is the first thing that comes to mind that might be causing the problem. I would suggest dragging the patterns from your Documents folder to the Trash, and then insert the CD and try again. Keep an eye on the status bar to be sure the download is complete before ejecting the CD.
Another less likely possibility is that your computer is running out of room. Have you trashed Caches folders recently? It's astonishing how much memory they use up. If your computer seems to be a little sluggish these days, it could be that the Caches folders need to go to the Trash. If this reads like techie gobbledegook, let me know and I'll tell you the steps in actual English. LOL
On the other hand, is your computer connected to a server?
Toni