Retail equipment

An electronic transaction system for managing transactions related to items selected by a user, the system comprising:

• a first transaction module arranged to manage transactions in respect of local items supplied within a retail environment;
• a data store arranged to store updatable data relating to remote items provided by a remote server;
• and
• a second transaction module arranged to access the updatable data to provide access to the remote items via the electronic transaction system.

A method of updating a transaction module for managing transactions of remote items obtained from a remote server, wherein the remote items are supplied via an electronic transaction system, the method comprising:

• sending an initial update message from the transaction module to the remote server, wherein the update message contains details of data stored in an data store;
• comparing the details of the data stored in the data store with a data record indicating the remote items available via the electronic transaction system, and determining if the contents of the data store require updating;
• and
• downloading data from the remote server which comprise updates for the data store.

A method of performing a transaction in which a remote item is obtained from a remote server via an electronic transaction system, the method comprising:

• selecting a class of remote item from one or more classes of remote items;
• reading data associated with the selected class of remote item, wherein the data is stored in a data store;
• entering input data relating to one or more variables associated with the selected class of remote item into a data input means;
• sending the input data to the remote server in a remote item data message;
• receiving a remote item acknowledgement message from the remote server containing transaction data confirming that the remote item has been obtained.