Abstract: A method for automated ordering by a customer at a remote location to a vendor in a central location, comprises the steps of composing an order at the remote location and entering the order into a customer computer; initiating a connection between the customer computer and a vendor computer at the central location across a communications media; transmitting at least the order and customer information identifying the customer to the vendor computer by the customer computer; verifying the order in the vendor computer and transmitting a job number from the vendor computer to the customer computer; comparing the customer information in the vendor computer with previously-stored customer database information; entering the order for further processing in a first manner if the comparing step produces a match between the customer information and the previously-stored customer database information; and entering the order for further processing in a second manner if the comparing step does not produce a match between t