IDRISI binary .vec format conversion

I've got several binary files of .vec and .dvc that I want to put into
another format. I'm having trouble finding any program that can do
this. Much Googleing has only pointed me to IDRISI and its convert
module. I don't have this program nor am I likely to get it. It runs
on Windoze for one thing.

I would appreciate pointers to programs that can convert this format
into some other format. At this point, I'm open to any other format.

Also, where is this format documented? I see several small pieces of
information on web sites that tell me about its ascii cousin but don't
directly discuss the binary file. It seems that multiple web sites are
needed to find all the tidbits on this. I would be willing to write my
own conversion tools if if the format is well documented.

Is this a proprietary format? Aren't we beyond that yet.

Thanks for any advice or pointers.

--Bob