Making a Hairpin Leg Wooden Desk  

As long as you
are prepared for the wood to have an oiled finish. I purchased a Numerar beech top with the intention of polyurethaning it -- I was making a bathroom vanity cabinet. When I received the top I became aware that it was not raw wood, as I had expected. I had to return it.
I suppose you could wax the top, after removing any excess oil.
I ended up purchasing a maple "butcher block" top, similar to the construction of the IKEA one but finished with a hard surface. This product has been available for many years, in the US.
I believe manufacturers of thick staved wood tops are unable to assure that the product will remain flat as it travels from the plant to the customer, unless it has been given some sort of sealant.

The Oil?
Is the oil something that I need to worry about? I am planning to place my iMac on it, and if there is anything on the table that would damage it, I might scrap the idea. HOWEVER, my friend does have many sanding tools, and if the table as they say is real wood, this should not be a problem. However, I am hoping to simply purchase the top, screw in the legs and be done with it.
You would not believe the amount of stress involved with finding solid wood tops of this thickness, especially in the area of raw wood. The planning of this project has been a nightmare.

I've had slabs of solid wood ...
I've had slabs of solid wood milled to the thickness I want at a local mill that does exotic woods. It's not cheap but it's worth it.

You will find
your top wrapped in plastic and well oiled. You could clean any excess oil off the wood with rags and paint thinner (mineral spirits). A coat of wax will make the top nicer to touch and won't stain your papers as oil might. Be sure to apply the same treatment to both sides of the panel, to prevent warping.
No, I don't think any hardware on the desk -- computer, etc -- will be affected by whatever finish is on the wood.
I'm sorry to hear you project has been a "nightmare." Many things we do for the first time can be loaded with surprises. But projects to improve our surroundings should be positive experiences, undertaken with energy and good expectations. Best of luck with your new desk !

Thats an expensive top, even ...
Thats an expensive top for Ikea, the big hardware shops have laminated panels, I get them pretty often. Pull one from the middle of the pack, let it aclimate and though not entirely correct bolting it to a rigid frame helps if it still cups, alternativley laminating two sheets together (concave sides facing) flattens them out.
But seriously if you want a good top pay a cabinet maker to make you one, it will be cheaper than that and no doubt better too, you could get a nice bevelled edge and enjoy the finishing and screwing the legs on yourself.

Seems like a fine idea to me.
Ikea's thinner beech counter/table tops are made from short pices of wood finger-jointed into long strips and laminated, resulting in a rather busy appearance. I'm not sure this is also the case with the thicker oak and birch tops, though. Best to see one in person if that is a concern. The website makes no mention of an oil finish, though it's probably best to, again, confirm this at the store if it's a concern.
The legs look like they'd easily support the substantial weight of a thick oak top. Just be sure to mount them with appropriately sized screws and pre-drill their holes! Off the top of my head, something like 1" #12 pan head sheet metal screws seem about right.
Bon chance!
Edit: Ah, I see now that the leg plates are drilled for #10 screws. I might go up to 1 1/4" length in that case for a 1 1/2" thick top.

Hey
Hey everyone, here is the finished product:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/67774457@N06/6732656701/

Nice Job!
looks great 🙂

Not bad.
What is that you used for the top? A solid-core door?

Slab Wood Options
For future reference, consider finding second hand furniture outlet stores like Room and Board Outlet in Minneapolis MN. They sell a variety of pieces of dimentional prefinished table tops for a fraction of new. Might just be mis drilled screw holes but the wood is excellent.
FYI I don't work for them, just been there-done that.