The first part i can help you with. It looks like the "radar smiling contacts" easter egg made by NvDrifter i believe. This little mod, if you want to use it, eliminates them and reduces the large size of the contacts in the radar cathode tube screen as well. With this installed you can clear see how much ships are into a large convoy.
Small Radar Contacts Mod can be found here.
http://www.subsim.com/radioroom/down...p?do=file&id=9