Not universal, but not always proprietary either. I think this is the one I used in a pinch for my usb-serial cable:

[Link: bebits.com]

It is freeware, but it worked for my cable, which I believe is FTDI chip based (it was a basic white box from China cable). In this case, I'm assuming the drivers work for the chip, so the manufacturer of the cable is probably irrelevant.