Francis "Frank" Joseph Gaude, Jr. passed away on October 30, 2022 in Huntsville, Alabama, after a long illness. He was born on March 22, 1932 in Port Allen, Louisiana, to Francis Joseph and Genevieve (Gassie) Gaude.

Frank grew up in Port Allen with his parents, brother William "Bill," and sister Elizabeth "Betty Anne." He graduated from Catholic High School in Baton Rouge in 1950. It was clear at an early age that Frank had a brilliant mind when instructors asked for his opinions and advice on scientific matters. He continued his education at Louisiana State University where he earned a degree in physics in 1954. While attending LSU, he worked as a sound engineer at a local recording studio.

After graduation, he followed Bill to the West Coast when he was recruited as an aeronautical engineer for Douglas Aircraft in Los Angeles, California. At Douglas, Frank tested sound and acoustics in modern aircraft. He also met Elizabeth "Betty" Mathesius, who was employed in the engineering library. He immediately knew she was the woman he would marry. They were married in 1955 in Santa Monica, California, and lived in Manhattan Beach. A year later they welcomed their first child, Cynthia. During the next five years they lived in Tustin, California, and had three more children, Michelle, Joseph and Suzanne. Frank was a skilled photographer and artistically documented the family's early experiences with his Nikon S1.

Frank was an amateur radio operator and set up his own radio shack in the family garage. In 1957 a Los Angeles radio station reported that he was the first person on the West Coast to detect signals from Sputnik 1, the Soviet Union's first artificial Earth satellite. He was the first amateur to use and promote limiterless demodulators for RTTY. His call signs were W4ONJ and K6IBE.

After several years at Douglas, Frank worked at Aeroneutronic Systems, Inc. in Newport Beach, California. In 1963 he received an offer he couldn't refuse from Space Craft Inc. (now SCI Technology, Inc.) in Huntsville, Alabama. He and Betty packed up the kids and moved across the country in the family station wagon.

At SCI Frank worked on telemetry communications and dashboard devices for the Apollo Program. At home he enjoyed astronomy and used a large telescope to observe the heavens with his family. He worked long hours, but once a month on Sunday his children took turns going out with him for special time on a drive around town, enjoying an ice cream or stopping by the local five-and-dime. During the summer he drove the family to Guntersville Lake for camping and waterskiing excursions as well as annual beach vacations in Panama City, Florida.

In 1969 Frank took an opportunity to set up an SCI sales office in Northern California. He opened the door to Silicon Valley for the company while he worked from home and spent more time with his family. They lived in Los Altos Hills where Frank enjoyed numerous hobbies, old and new, with family and friends. He built a horse corral on his property, trained horses and taught his children how to ride. He took his family to local horse shows, rodeos and festivals. He rode, repaired and built motorcycles with son Joe and friends. He continued exploring astronomy using a large rotating telescope. Always seeking the truth, Frank studied philosophy and world religions and enjoyed good-natured debates with friends, teachers and ministers.

In 1981 Frank gave up the ham radio in favor of the personal computer, which would become a life-long passion where he made full use of its capabilities and built his own custom computers. In 1982, with his son Joe, Frank founded Echelon, Inc., a CPM software company that sold the Z-System operating system. Frank is the author of the MODEM7 extension of XMODEM.

Throughout his career, Frank was involved in world-changing ideas like the space program and the personal computer. He expanded his own mind as he brought those ideas to life, and the fruits of his labors expanded the minds of those around him.

After 25 years of employment at SCI, Frank retired in 1988. He and Betty moved to South Lake Tahoe where Joe and Sue were living. He felt at home in the high mountains and discovered the joy of bicycling. He rode the hills around their home and said he was in the best physical shape of his life. He volunteered at Barton Memorial Hospital. In 1990 Frank and Joe closed Echelon, Inc. Frank continued to explore the world of computers and desktop publishing. He started NoName Designs, a graphic design company that serviced local businesses. He also started a bulletin board service where he led philosophical and spiritual discussions with like-minded people around the world. During this time, Frank discovered Universal Sufism, a mystical Islamic path to divine truth, which he continued to practice through the years.

In 2000 his daughter Sue and her husband Larry were living in Cameron Park, California. Sue found the perfect home for Frank and Betty five minutes from her own. She encouraged them to leave the snowy winters of Lake Tahoe, and for the next 15 years Frank and Betty enjoyed sunny weather and closer proximity to their children and grandchildren. Frank ended his design business but continued to use the name NoName Designs for his new online discussion board. He has a website at yantrayoga.typepad.com. At age 75, he found a new way towards health and spiritual development when he joined a local Tai chi group. He attended classes twice a week, mastered the forms and made many friends.

After their beloved Betty passed away in 2015, Frank, Sue and Larry decided to move to a small horse ranch in Gilroy, California. Frank continued NoName Designs and enjoyed life in the country taking photographs and spending time with family. In 2019 Frank returned to Huntsville, Alabama, to join his son Joe and granddaughter, Sophie. He continued his daily postings on NoName Designs until the fall of 2021 when he moved to Regency Retirement Village. He spent his last years battling congestive heart failure and hearing loss but never failed to charm his new friends with his intelligence, kindness and wit.

Frank is survived by his sister Betty Anne Ross (Louis); his daughters, Cynthia Gebhart (John), Michelle Pierce (Grant), Suzanne White (Larry), his son Joseph; his grandchildren, Joseph, Jessica, Grant Jr., Genevieve, Sophia; and his great grandchild, Oliver.

Some of Frank's favorite things:

The teachings of Hazrat Inayat Khan

Dining out with family and friends

The poetry of Rumi

Experimenting with Linux distributions

The 1952 film version of Moulin Rouge

Sidney Bechet

The artwork of Alphonse Mucha

Photographing horses, birds, and other wildlife

The song Jambalaya (On the Bayou)

Cooking gumbo for a crowd

The Rubaiyat by Omar Kayyam

Watching college and professional football

The Last of the Mohicans by James Fenimore Cooper