Short:        read Microsoft Structured Storage files
Author:       Roberto Arturo Tena Sánchez, Morphos port by Carsten Siegner
Uploader:     Carsten Siegner (carstensiegner osnanet de)
Type:         dev/lib
Version:      2.0.1
Architecture: ppc-morphos >= 3.1


cole is a free C OLE library.

cole is distributed under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL)
to give an impulse to the Free Software. cole distribution license is
compatible with the Open Source definition.

Using cole, you can access Microsoft' Structured Storage files. The most
popular Microsoft's programs generate Structured Storage files, incluiding
the Microsoft' suite for offices. StarDivision' suite (StarOffice) generate
Structured Storage files too. FlashPix file format is Structured Storage too.

What is a Structured Storage file? Inside a Structured Storage file there is
a filesystem, with directories and files, which Microsoft calls containers
and streams. 

Using cole you can travel through such filesystem and access the files. cole
doesn't know about internal structure of a stream, it only reads the raw
data. You can use the Microsoft's documentation available at
http://msdn.microsoft.com or the information available at
http://www.wotsit.org to know the binary file format of the streams. If you
know anything in the side of StarDivision email me. FlashPix file format is
well documented.

cole was developed using the information available at
http://wwwwbs.cs.tu-berlin.de/~schwartz/pmh/guide.html and the OLE::Storage
Perl module from the same site, and no information from any other source
(incluiding Microsoft) has been used.