I played through that factory in Chrono Trigger. I remember when you first start, there are two ways to go. From what I recall, going to the right eventually helps you learn the password for later on in the area. But I didn't realize this at first, and went to the left side.

I got to the computer that asked for a password, and it said something like Zabie... hinting to you I suppose that the password is X,A,B,Y. Like I said, I'm pretty sure it tells you this specifically if you explore the rest of the dungeon, but it looks like I didn't have to. And I'm glad, because I remember that place being kind of annoying anyway.

So after that, I went to the End of Time and learned magic. I also defeated the easy form of Spekkio that was there. Then it was back to 1000 AD to fight Heckran in his cave. Lightning with Crono, and the dual tech Antipode (sp?) with Marle and Lucca defeated him easily. I still can't really figure out what purpose it served in the story, as the information Heckran tells you about Lavos being summoned by Magus can be learned elsewhere. The whole point of the cave seemed to be teaching the player that some enemies are only vulnerable to magic attacks.

Next, I took Crono, Marle, and Robo to 600 AD for the next part of the game.

"I will do this. Nothing in my life matters except this. No moment in my life exists except this moment. I am born in this moment, and if I fail, I will die in this moment." - Raistlin