First, as I understand the situation, you can currently get a Kidani standard studio but not Jambo through a broker for "late October/early November." One piece of advice: if your dates include November 3 (Thurs), 4, or 5, then I recommend you stop thinking about it and make a reservation either for Kidani or a split stay now. Those dates are part of the Wine & Dine race weekend and though Kidani is open much of the year at 7 months out, there is a real risk its studios could be gone before then for some or all of that weekend time, which weekend happens to be the highest
DVC demand weekend of the year, one of the only two times during the year when even SSR can disappear before 7 months out (the other is December 31).
As to Kidani standard rooms and some of the questions you raise, see the following map
http://www.wdwinfo.com/maps/Kindani_Village_Map.jpg The front entrance faces west and there is a south wing on the right and north wing on the left. Jambo is located to the east above the "Disney's Animal Kingdom Lodge, Kidani Village" sign in the upper right hand corner of the map.
On the map you will see the lobby and the 8 building pods that make up the south wing, with the last one being small, and the 9 building podes of the north wing with the last one from the lobby being half sized. The resort is very long. The hallway walk from the end of the south to the the end of the north wing is about 2/3 mile. The front door of Kidani is about 1/2 mile from the front door of Jambo. An end room on the north wing of Kidani is about 5/6 mile from the front door of Jambo.
The shortest possible walk from Kidani to Jambo requires you to be near the Zazu elevator and take it to the ground floor (the stairways are in the same places as the elevators). On the ground floor, running almost throughout the building, is the under-building parking lot, and on each wing there are three elevators, one near the lobby, one about a quarter the way down the hall of the wing and one about 3/4 of the way down the hall on the wing. The ones near the lobby have no name. On the south wing to the right of the lobby, you will see a red AED sign between the second and third pods. That is where the Timon elevator is. You will also see a red AED sign between the fifth and sixth pods. That is where the Zazu elevator is and the one to use to have the shortest walk to Jambo.
The standard rooms are on the same side as the front entrance of the building, The pool is on the norrth wing and the bus stop on the south wing. On the south wing you will find standard views only in the first four buiding pods from the lobby, which look towards the bus stop and the road area, and that would be your view if you want close to the Zazu elevator. On the north wing to the left, you will find standard views in the first three buidling pods, all more less facing the pool area. The red AED sign between the second and third pods is where the Rafiki elevator is, which gives you the shortest possible walk to a gate to the pool area. There are also some converted savanna view rooms on the north wing that overlooked the Pembe savanna and are now standard. Exactly how many is unclear. In the fourth buidling pod from the lobby, it appears there may be some rooms right at the bottom of Pembe that are now standard view. Confirmed is that the rooms in the sixth buidling pod from the lobby that overlook Pembe are now standard -- they were converted because the outer fence to the savanna comes fairly close to the building and animals usually pass through but do not stop in the area. Also known is that a GV overlooking Pembe in the seveth pod is now standard and thus there may be other standard rooms overlooking Pembe in the seventh pod but that has not been confirmed by reports. If you want a savanna view room that has been converted to standard, your best request is a room near the Pumba elevator which is at the red AED sign on the north wing between the sixth and seventh pods. However, that will put you a long way from the Kidani lobby, a longer way from the bus stop, and an eternity from Jambo.
