So far, Fran Carango has the only laptop I've seen that can use that joystick cable. Most of the rest need a dedicated midi interface of some sort, or a pc "to host" cable. This is only good if your slave source has the same pc connector.
You can get a "cigarette box" type adapter, or a pcmcia type. I have the EXP Midi Traveler, a pcmcia card that gives me a joystick end, and two midi ends.