Regarding the labels, it may be the best solution to add them to the graphic. Any automated positioning of the labels has some weaknesses so far.
Every you have to do to make your visual analog scale (slider) work is to enter the proper positions for "minimum" and "maximum". You will see a preview below, so you can easily find out the correct values.
If you would like to see an example of a vertical slider, create a new slider question and choose the temperature scale from the graphics selection.