  A Borel system $(X,S)$ is `almost Borel universal' if any free Borel
dynamical system $(Y,T)$ of strictly lower entropy is isomorphic to a Borel
subsystem of $(X,S)$, after removing a null set. We obtain and exploit a new
sufficient condition for a topological dynamical system to be almost Borel
universal. We use our main result to deduce various conclusions and answer a
number of questions. Along with additional results, we prove that a `generic'
homeomorphism of a compact manifold of topological dimension at least two can
model any ergodic transformation, that non-uniform specification implies almost
Borel universality, and that $3$-colorings in $\mathbb Z^d$ and dimers in
$\mathbb Z^2$ are almost Borel universal
