A COL file stores the rgb values for entries in the color palette. Both Animator Pro and the original Animator produce COL files, but the formats are different. To process a COL file for input, check the file size. If it is exactly 768 bytes, the file is an original Animator COL file. If the file is any other size, it is an Animator Pro COL file - which makes identification almost impossible. Animator Pro COL Files do have a 8-byte header : OFFSET Count TYPE Description 0000h 1 dword File size, including this header 0004h 1 word ID=0B123h 0006h 1 word Version, currently 0 Following the file header are palette entries in rgbrgb... order. Each of the r, g, and b components is a single byte in the range of 0-255. Generally, there will be data for 256 palette entries, but this cannot be assumed. The actual number of palette entries is ((size-8)/3); if this value is not an even multiple of three, the file is corrupted. Original Animator COL Files A COL file created by the original Animator is exactly 768 bytes long. There is no file header or other control information in the file. EXTENSION:COL OCCURENCES:PC PROGRAMS:Autodesk Animator, Autodesk Animator Pro SEE ALSO:FLIc,FLT
This information is from Corion.net and is used with permission.