A system and method for graphically locating merchandise. An interactive display can present a high level environment displaying various categories of merchandise in a mapped image. A user can highlight a portion of the mapped image and navigate to a lower level environment displaying a subset of categories associated with the highlighted portion in another mapped image. The user can continue to navigate through increasingly detailed environments until a desired product is located. In one embodiment, a computer system associated with the interactive display identifies a store location where the desired product or goods similar to the desired product may be found. In another embodiment, the computer system allows the user to locate a plurality of desired items and provides the user with a store map locating all of the desired items and illustrating a path from the interactive display to the desired items.

A mobile device (1) for electronic commerce. The device includes a mobile housing (2) and a microprocessor-based unit (6) coupled to a memory storage device (5) in the housing. The device has a power supply (3) that is coupled to the microprocessor unit while supplying power to all of the components. The device has one or more input controls (4) coupled to the microprocessor unit. The device also includes a wireless receiver (or transceiver) (7) and additional wireless transceiver (8) coupled to the microprocessor based unit, to the memory storage and to one or more antennas (9). The wireless receiver is adapted to receive information comprising text graphics and sound from a wireless network. The wireless transceiver is adapted to send and receive text, graphics and sound from a wireless network. The device also has a display (11) and speaker (10) coupled to the housing and coupled to the microprocessor-based unit. An advertisement comprising the text, graphics and sound derived from the information can also be included. The information is outputted on the display.

A system and method of performing financial management tracking comprising entering, on a mobile control device, data associated with a financial transaction; storing said entered financial transaction data in a database within said mobile control device; periodically synchronizing said mobile control device database with a base station database via a communications link such that budgetary and financial transaction data is update. In one embodiment of the invention, each member of a household utilizes a separate mobile control device, each of the mobile control devices is synchronized with the base device such that all mobile control devices are synchronized with each other.

A method, system and apparatus for identifying malfunctioning remote devices, such as point of sale devices, are disclosed. In operation, a performance history for one or more remote devices is built and a normal operating day is determined from the performance history. Also extracted from this performance history are average and variance values for various aspects of satisfactory remote device performance. During remote device evaluations, the current operating performance of each remote device is compared with the normal day and the average and variance values for the respective remote device. For remote devices operating outside of the normal day, average and variances values, a likelihood estimate that the remote device is actually malfunctioning is calculated. For remote devices determined likely to be malfunctioning, an approximation of the remote device's losses are made such that the remote device with the greatest losses may be prioritized for maintenance or other purposes.