I have an alchemy prob. I am running XP and have not had any of the probs listed above. This is no longer an issue for me as I have mapped out all the recipes, but just so you know:

When I alt-tab to view my recipe list in notepad, I come back to children who stand there lost and confused and no longer have the herbs in their hands. The herbs on the table sometimes, but not always I think, disappear as well. Also, I have occasionally made a potion and nothing happens. The pot just sits there empty, no explosion, no potion ready, nothing. I have to collect 3 more herbs and try again. When this happens, I have collected 3 more herbs, the villager uses 2, leaves the third on the table, and the potion is made or explodes. Funny though, it makes the same potion as it would if it had not had a booboo.