Tim O'Reilly
Tech publisher who popularised the terms “open source” and “Web 2.0”
- Age
- 72 yrs
- Birthday in 213 days
- Works listed
- 2
- Essay, Book
- Honours
- 1
- Most recent 2007
- Profile views
- 0
- 0 followers
Tim O’Reilly is an Irish-born American publisher who founded O’Reilly Media, known for programming books with animal engravings on their covers. He helped popularise the terms “open source” and “Web 2.0” and organises influential technology conferences.
Biography
Background
O’Reilly was born in Cork and grew up in San Francisco. He studied classics at Harvard and began as a technical writer.
O’Reilly Media
In 1978 he founded a technical writing business that became O’Reilly & Associates. Its manuals for Unix and the X Window System, and books such as Programming Perl, became programmers’ staples, recognised by their animal covers. It published the first commercial website, GNN, in 1993.
Open source and Web 2.0
O’Reilly hosted the 1998 “Freeware Summit” that helped popularise the term “open source”. His company’s 2004 conference popularised “Web 2.0” for user-driven sites such as Wikipedia and blogs.
Writing
In WTF? What’s the Future and Why It’s Up to Us (2017) he wrote about technology, jobs and the economy. O’Reilly Media now runs an online learning platform.
Timeline
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1954
Born in Cork, Ireland
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1978
Founds his company
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1993
Launches Global Network Navigator
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1998
Freeware Summit
-
2004
Web 2.0 Conference
-
2005
“What Is Web 2.0” essay
-
2017
WTF? published
Notable works
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2005
What Is Web 2.0 Essay
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2017
WTF? What’s the Future and Why It’s Up to Us Book
Awards and honours
-
White Camel Award
2007
Did you know?
-
1
The animal engravings on the covers were chosen by designer Edie Freedman.
-
2
GNN was one of the first websites to carry advertising.
-
3
He studied Greek and Latin classics.
Frequently asked
Who is Tim O'Reilly?
Tim O’Reilly is an Irish-born American publisher who founded O’Reilly Media, known for programming books with animal engravings on their covers. He helped popularise the terms “open source” and “Web 2.0” and organises influential technology conferences.
How old is Tim O'Reilly?
Tim O'Reilly is 72 years old, born on 6 June 1954 in Cork, Ireland.
Where is Tim O'Reilly from?
Tim O'Reilly was born in Cork, Ireland.
What is Tim O'Reilly known for?
Tim O'Reilly is best known for O’Reilly Media and its animal-cover books; popularising “Web 2.0”; open-source advocacy.
What awards has Tim O'Reilly received?
Notable honours include White Camel Award (2007).
References
- Tim O'Reilly — Wikipedia. Wikipedia. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
- Tim O'Reilly — Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
- Tim O'Reilly — Goodreads author page. Goodreads. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
- Official website. tim.oreilly.com. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
- Tim O'Reilly (Q347691) — structured data. Wikidata. Retrieved 4 November 2026.
Includes material from the Wikipedia article “Tim O'Reilly”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. That text is available under the same licence. Learn more
External links
About this profile
- Researched by the TrackFame editorial team; reviewed by Sanjay Sokal under our editorial policy
- First published 4 November 2026
- Last updated
Cite this page
“Tim O'Reilly.” TrackFame, last updated 4 November 2026. https://trackfame.com/person/tim-oreilly
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