The requirement that all MCSEs recertify on windows 2000 by 2001 has been causing quite some controversy among MCSES; many feel that it is nothing more than a marketing ploy to place pressure on MCSEs and through them on their employers to purchase Windows 2000. While NT 3.51 hasn't been a popular option in the marketplace for many years, the NT 3.51 certification track was only retired in 1999. For Microsoft to be saying that by 2001 Windows NT v4 will be equally obsolete is ridiculous - especially given the cautious many companies have been taking towards deploying Win2k, both because of the high cost, the concerns over security in view of the software's newness, the problems that Office 2000 has been causing, and general nervousness over investing in Microsoft products in view of the current anti-trust suit, all of which would suggest that Windows 2000 will be slower to gain marketshare than NT 4 was. So existing MCSEs, all of whom have already shelled out at least US$600 to be certified, are a little miffed.