Mimms Museum of Technology and Art
Hall of Fame

In 2024, Mimms Museum of Technology and Art launched its Hall of Fame to recognize individuals whose work has profoundly shaped the field of technology.

Each year, a small number of honorees are selected in recognition of their exceptional impact on the technology industry. Inductees represent the highest standard of achievement—individuals whose vision, creativity, and leadership have driven meaningful progress, influenced the direction of the field, and inspired generations of others. Their contributions extend beyond technical accomplishment, reflecting enduring significance and lasting influence.

Hall of Fame honorees are celebrated each spring during BYTE, the annual fundraising event held at the Mimms Museum.

Randy Wigginton

Randy Wigginton was born in 1960 and raised in what would soon become the center of Silicon Valley. In the summer of 1974, he attended a school session on computers that changed the direction of his life. Determined to have a computer of his own but unable to afford one, he joined the Homebrew Computer Club to learn how to build one himself. At fourteen, he was too young to drive and needed a ride to meetings. A generous club member offered to pick him up. That member was Steve Wozniak, beginning a lifelong friendship.

While still in high school, Randy joined Apple and became one of the early engineers shaping the personal computer revolution. He contributed to products such as Disk ][ and Applesoft BASIC, worked on the original Macintosh team developing parts of the operating system, and later created MacWrite, the Macintosh’s pioneering word processor.

Over the decades that followed, Randy held engineering and leadership roles at several influential Silicon Valley companies, including E*TRADE, PayPal, and Google. Today, he leads the Reliability organization at Block, where he focuses on the resilience and performance of systems used at large scale.

Recognized for his pioneering contributions to personal computing and software engineering, Randy’s career reflects both deep technical craftsmanship and sustained industry impact. Randy is being recognized with the 2026 Heatherington Award for Technological Innovation for his early and lasting contributions to personal computing and software engineering.

Gil Amelio

Dr. Gilbert F. Amelio is one of the original figures of Silicon Valley and has achieved numerous business, scientific, and technological successes, including leading the transformation of several Fortune 500 companies.

After earning his PhD in physics from the Georgia Institute of Technology, Amelio began his career at Bell Laboratories, where he met William (Bill) Shockley, inventor of the transistor—later voted the most important invention of the 20th century. Under Shockley’s mentorship, Amelio completed development of the charge-coupled device (CCD), an invention later recognized by both the Nobel Committee and the US government.

Amelio joined Fairchild Camera and Instrument Corporation in 1971, where he optimized the first practical charge-coupled image sensor. CCD technology is now widely used in consumer camcorders, professional video cameras, digital still cameras, and scientific instruments. The CCD technology serves as the “eye” of the Hubble Space Telescope and is used extensively in observatories around the world.

He became President of Rockwell Semiconductor Products in 1983, leading the company to an industry-leading position in facsimile and data modems, as well as digital communications circuits. His successful turnaround of the division has been
taught as a case study at the Harvard Business School since 1988.

In 1991, Amelio was appointed Chairman and CEO of National Semiconductor Corporation, returning the company to profitability by focusing on mixed-signal technologies. Under his leadership, the company’s stock price increased more than sevenfold, and market capitalization reached $4 billion.
Five years later, he was called to lead Apple Computer. As CEO, he stabilized the company’s finances and initiated the acquisition of NeXT—bringing Steve Jobs back to Apple and helping set the stage for the company’s historic resurgence.

As a recipient of the Tech Catalyst Award, Amelio is recognized not only for the innovations he helped shepherd but also for the pivotal leadership that accelerated technological progress and reshaped the trajectory of modern computing and global communications.

David A. Bader, PhD

Dr. David A. Bader was born in 1969 in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, the son of chemistry professor Morris Bader and his wife Karen. A graduate of Liberty High School in Bethlehem, he is also an Eagle Scout. Awarded both his BS in computer engineering and MS in electrical engineering from Lehigh University and his PhD in electrical engineering from the University of Maryland. He has served on the faculty at the University of New Mexico, Georgia Institute of Technology (where he established the School of Computational Science and Engineering), and New Jersey Institute of Technology.

He has served on the Computing Research Association’s board of directors, the National Science Foundation’s advisory committee on cyberinfrastructure, and on IEEE Computer Society’s board of governors. Known as an expert in the design and analysis of parallel and multicore algorithms for real-world applications such as those in cybersecurity and computational biology. His main areas of research are at the intersection of high-performance computing and real-world applications, including cybersecurity, massive-scale analytics, and computational genomics.

Bader built the first Linux supercomputer using commodity processors and a high-speed interconnection network. Bader is a Fellow of the IEEE, ACM, AAAS, and SIAM; a recipient of the IEEE Sidney Fernbach Award; the 2022 Innovation Hall of Fame inductee of the University of Maryland’s A. James Clark School of Engineering; and now a 2025 inductee of the Mimms Museum’s Hall of Fame.

Daniel S. Bricklin

Daniel S. Bricklin was born in 1951 in Philadelphia, where he attended Akiba Hebrew Academy. Starting college as a mathematics major, he switched to computer science, earning his BS in electrical engineering and computer science from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. After working for Digital Equipment Corporation and FasFax, he returned to education and received an MBA from Harvard University. While there, he co-developed VisiCalc, making it the first electronic spreadsheet available for home and office use.

He co-founded Software Arts, Inc. and sold VisiCalc through VisiCorp. Using the original Apple version, VisiCalc was rewritten to run on the Tandy TRS-80, Commodore PET, and Atari 800. Bricklin went on to found Software Garden, a consulting firm and developer of software applications, where he continues to serve as president.

Bricklin was inducted as a Fellow of the Association for Computing Machinery, is a founding trustee of the Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council, and has served on the boards of the Software Publishers Association and the Boston Computer Society.

Elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering and given a Grace Murray Hopper Award for VisiCalc. The IEEE Computer Society awarded Bricklin with the Computer Entrepreneur Award for pioneering the development and commercialization of the spreadsheet. Bricklin was given the Wharton Infosys Business Transformation Award for being a technology change leader. He has received an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Newbury College. A member of the National Academy of Engineering, he was made a Fellow of the Computer History Museum “for advancing the utility of personal computers by developing the VisiCalc electronic spreadsheet” and a recipient of the Hall of Fame honor in 2025 at Mimms Museum.

John Yates

With a legal career spanning over four decades, John Yates is nothing short of atitan in technology and venture capital law. His journey, marked by foresight andinnovation, has seen him at the forefront of legal developments in the tech sector – since the beginning of “computer law.”

John’s journey began in 1981 after Duke Law, inspired by his sister Jean’s Palo Alto tech startup. While building key Silicon Valley connections, he saw Atlanta’s untapped potential. He developed a robust client base of West Coast tech companies and co-founded the Southeastern Software Association (SSA), which later merged with the Technology Association of Georgia (TAG), another group he
helped establish, cementing Atlanta’s status as a tech hub.

Joining Morris Manning & Martin in 1987, John became a pioneer with his knack for understanding the intricacies of technology law and is a frequent speaker at national tech law events —his work was even cited by the U.S. Supreme Court. Now, as a co-founding partner of Gunderson Dettmer’s Atlanta/Southeast office, he continues to guide the next generation of tech innovators.

At the heart of John’s career is his passion for technology. He’s not just a lawyer; he’s an advocate for tech innovators across the Atlanta region and beyond. His work has empowered countless startups and established tech giants, guiding them through legal challenges and towards groundbreaking success.

Being honored by the Mimms Museum is a fitting tribute to his instrumental role in shaping the future of innovation.

Dale Alan Heatherington
1948-2021

Dale Heatherington was born in Orlando, Florida. He received an Associates Degree in Electrical Engineering Technology from Southern Technical Institute (STI) in Marietta, GA in 1969. His first full-time job was with Norman’s Electronics in Brookhaven, GA. While working at National Data Corporation, he started building computer modems and became a co-partner and co-owner of DC Hayes Associates in 1978. In 1980, his company became Hayes Microcomputer Products, Inc. in Norcross, GA. Dale was the inventor of the personal computer modem. The Hayes Smartmodem became the standard of the industry. Dale also defined the AT command set which is still in use today not only in modems but also in Bluetooth devices. After seeing his company take over much of the market (selling 140,000 modems in 1982), he retired in 1984 at the age of 36. Dale holds 5 modem technology patents (one for the AT command set) and one joint patent for a remote data line monitor.

During his retirement, he continued to tinker with technology in his personal lab and small machine shop. In recent years, he enjoyed building robots and entering them in competitions sponsored by Atlanta Hobby Robot Club, DragonCon, and other organizations throughout the south. His philanthropic efforts included donating a Mechatronics Lab to STI.

More information is available at:
https://www.wa4dsy.com/heatherington/hayes/index.html
(includes schematics and source code for modems)

https://robots.wa4dsy.net/home/about

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hayes_Microcomputer_Products

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dale_Heatherington

https://engineering.kennesaw.edu/robotics-mechatronics/students/mechatronics-lab.php

https://www.dropbox.com/s/awapjf4pvphqbnp/DALE%20short%20version%20finalPPrevusuib%20215%20pmaug%201.mp4?dl=0