About KJM
KJM Computer Systems Ltd started as a computer hardware repair business in 1982 providing support services to independent schools around London and the S.E. Later, with schools’ newly gained autonomy through LMS and Grant Maintained status, our client base increased to include LEA schools.
In 1982 there were effectively only a handful of types of computer and peripherals which would need to be repaired so we were able to provide a quite specialised service. Typically computers found in schools would include that wonderful invention ‘the ‘BBC Computer’, ‘Research Machines 380Z and later the 480Z with Anadex, Walters or Epson MX80 Printers. ICT suites didn’t exist and some schools had only a single computer. The first school networks to appear were either the DOS based C/PM menu system RML 480Z with an RML 380Z Znet server with two 8” floppy drives or the BBC Econet system. Although emulators were available the two systems were completely incompatible, one being based around the Zilog Z80 and the other the Motorola 6502 CPU. If a system went wrong, and they frequently did, main boards and auxiliary cards would need to be repaired to component level using circuit diagrams as they were far too expensive to replace – even floppy disk drives were repaired and re-aligned as the ‘5.25” standard’ drives were very expensive items then. Heaven forbid if one of those 5 megabyte Winchester hard disk’s packed up. Of the thousands of items we repaired I think it unlikely that very few have not long since been assigned to the tip to RIP!
That was then, here we are now and things have moved on. Five megabytes has become 5000 gigabytes and about a tenth of the size, and MHz 8bit bus has become GHz 64bits.
KJM has also moved on and developed from the days of the first IBM PC to providing specialised software and network support.
