CowboyNeal is the online nickname ("handle") on Slashdot and other websites of Slashdot editor Jon Pater. His handle was inspired by a Grateful Dead tribute to Neal Cassady in their song, That’s It for The Other One, the lyrics of which run:

Skippin’ through the lily fields I came across an empty space,

It trembled and exploded, left a bus stop in it’s place.

The bus came by and I got on, that’s when it all began,

There was Cowboy Neal at the wheel of the bus to never ever land.

He is best known as the target of the usual comic option on Slashdot's daily poll. In the past, nearly all Slashdot polls contained what is called a "CowboyNeal" option, where one of the poll options is either "CowboyNeal" or some variant. For example, if the poll was "What kind of vehicle do you drive?", the CowboyNeal option may be "CowboyNeal", or "CowboyNeal drives my limo" or even "I ride CowboyNeal's handlebars." This has spread outside of the poll and often jokes will be seen referencing CowboyNeal. Since the former poll editor stopped being in charge of approving polls the CowboyNeal option has been noticeably absent, instead being replaced with a more generic silly option, or even not having a replacement.

More interesting, however, is the prevalence of the CowboyNeal option in the absence of its explicit declaration. Usually the last of the poll options contains the word CowboyNeal or a variant thereof. Should that last poll option not refer to CowboyNeal explicitly, posters invariably question the nature of said option and its possible relation to CowboyNeal's life or given preferences. The CowboyNeal option would thus theoretically exist in every Slashdot poll.

See also

• Slashdot subculture

External links

• cowboyneal.org