explain like to an idiot

[katz]

i want to make the server accept passwords not compatible with the new authentication methods
i'm using 4.1 but the clients i want to use on it are both only compatible with 4.0 and older.
i was told that it can be done but the manual is too complex for me.
i tried what i understood from it but with no result.
what i did understand from the manual (and it really does say that) is that there is no easy way to do this.
if somebody helps me do this i wouldn't have spent 3 months for nothing when i could have been studying more for school.