Bank payments and receipts are basic procedures in Sage, not sure what you mean by different from...? Might vary between products/versions, I can only speak for Sage 50 Accounts Professional. Have a look at built-in help (press F1), register for Ask-Sage for online help or consider self-training with one of many books available or buy Workbooks training from Sage site.
In Sage Bank payments and bank receipts are used for one off payments (ie to people with whom you would not normally have a customer/supplier account) and for things like drawings, wages, etc.
For credit purchases and sales you would set up a supplier/customer account and pay through bank/supplier or bank/customer.
