History

The company Multitech was established in the Taiwanese city Hsinchu in 1976 by Stan Shih, his wife Carolyn Yeh and five business partners. Multitech was originally a supplier for electronic components, but was also a consultant for microprocessor technologies.

In 1981, Multitech launched the MPF-1 on the market as an educational computer that would learn the user how to program with a Z80 processor. Multitech later also made an Apple II clone and eventually went into business with the IBM PC. The company was renamed to Acer in 1987.

The Micro-Professor is still being actively manufactured by Flite Electronics International Ltd., a company headquartered in Southampton, England. Due to its ongoing production, the MPF-1 is (most likely) the all-time record holder for the computer with the longest lifespan.

Design

The Micro-Professor was not designed like a regular computer. The MPF-1 was made so that the computer would fit nicely on a shelf next to books.

System

The MPF-1 was made for the purpose of educating the learner the basics of assembly programming, specifically with the Z80. The Zilog Z80 was a commonly used processor in the early days of the computer.