Would a render speed be different if for example a tank with full details on the inside unseen rendered from the outside view vs a hollow outer surface only tank?

Is there a free tutorial somewhere that explains nodes to the never used a node and how to use them advantageously?

Can I distort a model to better fit a UV map? For example, a hound dog's big floppy ears are raised vertically to UV map then positioned normally back down when rigging?

Is there a way to have an extrude performed to inherit its weight painting from what it was extruded from?

Is there a current list online of known bugs for Maya 2015?
I noticed I have to close and reopen Maya when I use vertex selecting for giving a wieght value then try to paint with the brush after causes my model to explode!

Is there a what does this add-on do guide? Will disabling most of them them make Maya load faster?

I keep getting a can't raytrace not compatible with rgba_something something, why and how to fix that?

Thanks for reading and if you can answer, thanks for that too.
Eric