And FTP Software sank 2 3/8, to 9 1/2, after saying that it would report a first-quarter loss.

Romkey founded FTP Software, a commercial TCP/IP stack provider in 1986.

The core functions will be supplied by software from FTP Software of Boston, whose products have won praise for their technical virtues but have also been criticized for being incomprehensible to novice users.

FTP Software, one of the companies, dropped 13 3/8, to 11 7/8, and Microdyne, the other, was off 8 1/4, to 7, depressing computer stocks generally.

TRAC was used by FTP Software in its PC/TCP product as the modem dialler scripting language.

It was created in 1986 by FTP Software.

For example, John Romkey of FTP Software was the author of the MIT PC/IP package.

In 2002 Sandstorm purchased LanWatch, a commercial packet-oriented LAN monitor originally developed by FTP Software.

Mr. Heermance, 32, is a principal software engineer at FTP Software in North Andover, Mass.

Prior to that, he was Vice-President of Channel Sales and Market Development with FTP Software.