I had not spent any real time thinking about it, but on some level, I'm sure I was expecting gradients to be somewhat similar to the LW ones and be able to use stuff like distance from pivot etc in a pull-down menu (like LW). These seem like they are not worth the trouble (for me personally). I will just keep doing stuff in uv textures. When I saw the (texture image) gradient plugged into the node that is supposed to be making gradients, I knew this was not for me.
Thanks again Juanjo!... I am loving everything else!