Patent ID: 7523858

Claim:
A transaction method comprising: communicating with a database comprising user data; selecting a payment account; programming a data storage device with payment account information; and communicating the payment account information from the data storage device to a data storage device reader; wherein communicating with a database of user data comprises: activating a communications device; communicating with a database manager; wherein selecting a payment account comprises: retaining the properties of a magnetic stripe card to a previous rewrite state if no communication with the database manager; logging into the database manager via a user interface (UI); obtaining a current status of one or more accounts from which a payment may be made, the database updated by the database manager communicating with the user's financial institutions in order to query and update the status of the user's accounts; selecting an account of a financial institution the user wishes to use to fund the payment, notifying the database manager that one or more transactions from that account is being scheduled; wherein programming data storage device with payment account information comprises: inputting specific transaction information into the UI in communication with the database manager; communicating an authorization request from the database manager to the financial institution associated with the account designated by the user; authorizing the transaction and creating an authorization code; downloading the authorization code to the database manager; downloading the authorization code to the card writer; writing the authorization code on the magnetic stripe via the card writer; wherein communicating the payment account information from the data storage device to a data storage device reader comprises: swiping the magnetic stripe in the magnetic stripe card reader communicating the authorization from the card to the magnetic stripe card reader; and completing the transaction following the prompts on the POS terminal.