Bio
Neil McAllister is a freelance technology writer and analyst based in San Francisco, California. His areas of focus include Linux and open source, middleware, application development, databases, high performance computing, and IT for healthcare and the life sciences, among others.
He currently writes the Neil McAllister on Software blog for PC World Business Center and Fatal Exception for InfoWorld.com.
From 2004 to 2007, Neil was senior features editor for InfoWorld. In 2007, his weekly opinion column on Linux and open source for business, “Open Enterprise,” won the Western Publications Association’s Maggie Award for “Best Regularly Featured Web Column.”
Prior to joining InfoWorld, Neil was senior technology editor for Web Techniques and New Architect magazines for CMP Media. From 1998-2002, he wrote a biweekly computing and technology column for SFGate.com, the online arm of the San Francisco Chronicle. In addition, he has worked for a variety of clients, ranging from The Industry Standard to PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Neil’s unique insight into the computing industry stems from his own IT and software development background, having spent his early career in the nascent Web and multimedia CD-ROM industries. He first learned computer programming in 1982, at the age of nine.
When he’s not writing about science and technology, Neil is an occasional illustrator, having completed odd jobs for magazines, comics, and concerts, including promotional materials for the seminal horror-punk band, The Misfits. His satirical comic strip, The Adventures of Action Item, escaped the laboratory to become a Web and water-cooler sensation.
A Bay Area native, Neil has lived in the city of San Francisco since 1995. He is a citizen of the United States, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
