You would use the ability to specify a custom TGD for the default scene to address point 1.
Indeed, TGDs and node settings are XML format, plain text, human readable. You can take a node definition in text, posted here in the forums for example, copy the text, then paste directly into the node network. This can work with multiple nodes as well. There are a lot of pre-made clip files (.TGCs) shared here on the forums, mostly in the File Sharing area. Some of them are quite creative. Although TG doesn't currently have a clip file management system, if you already make use of a clipboard extension program (or are willing to learn one), you could easily configure it with a library of TGCs in text format, and with a hot-key you could post in one of your most-used node setups. Of course you could also just Insert Clip from the File menu and keep your clip file folder as a favorite in your file browser.
Nuke "Gizmos" sound like the macro functionality that has been often discussed here. It's definitely something we intend to add at some point. World Machine does the same thing and it works quite well, I imagine Nuke does too. Both good examples.
- Oshyan
