In terms of terms, since a couple people have asked: With a full extension drawer, the end of the drawer will line up [or come very close to lining up] with the frame of the cab. With Scherrs, you have your choice between full extension and 7/8ths extension. With self close, when you give a fully open drawer a little bump, it will do the rest by itself. They actually speed up a bit in the last couple of inches. When you first get them, they seem like 'self slam' drawers... With soft close, they slow down in the last couple of inches and just ease into place. The only time you'll notice it at all is when you are looking for some thing in the drawer below, and it certainly isn't a big deal even then, and even for the monumentally impatient [like me].

Interesting thread. I was in the exact same position a few months ago when we were planning our kitchen. Of course I wanted full extension, soft close on every drawer... but the reality was that we splurged on the granite, and I had to scale back somewhere else. After giving it a LOT of thought, I decided this was a reasonable place to save some money. (Although, granted, it's never easy or fun to scale back, but it's the darn budget, you know!) So, we got the FE, SC (in our cabinet line, those two features come together) for our two cutlery divider drawers only. My thinking was that it would be most important to be able to access the contents in the back part of the sections. All the rest of the drawers are just "regular"... and while it isn't quite as *nice* -- it is still quite functional and I am able to utilize (and reach into) the drawers just fine. In a perfect world, I would have had every gizmo and gadget and upgrade... but I live in A Real World ;o) And some compromises were inevitable!

I guess I was hoping for a quick fix, but that might not be possible. YES, my woodworking skills are definitely limited. We have the usual assortment of hand and small power tools, no table saw. I do have hand, circular, & sabre saws, Plus drill, etc. Maybe I should use this as an excuse to buy more tools? I have scrounged an old but unused breadboard (3/4 in hardwood) that I hope will work for the slide-out tray. I'll need to trim off a couple of inches, to match the width of the scanner. Given the height restrictions could I just hang sides via angle brackets under the desktop? I could then use standard drawer glides attached to these sides? Would I need a bottom or brace for stability? Would that be strong enough to support the weight of the scanner?

With the right tools (like say a RightAngle screw-driver, etc), good instructions, and lotsa patience/time, it should be doable... You should be able to practice one set first. Then the rest will be easy to do. Apart from books, DVDs, etc., what may also help is to get a cabinet from say some place like IKEA, see how it all goes together, and replicate the process. Return the cab after that. The only gotcha that I can think of, is if you are working with particle board boxes/drawers - if a mistake is made wrt holes drilled, it could a little painful to rectify the mistake. It is little more invloved to "fill" with wood-fillers (pastes made from quick drying water-soluble powders) and then relocate the holes/screws. Best, /venkat