If you took 3 rechargeable AAs, you could easily output a 5V supply using a small switching supply. Do you know how much current the thing takes? For a 500mA maximum output, you could use a LT1377 switching regulator and a couple of resistors and capacitors; that would give a nice 5V supply. Try this:
http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y125/bob_smith1492/power%20supply/3.jpg
About the laptop charger, sure, you could use it; unfortunately, laptops suck up so much power, I doubt you could get much use out of even D batteries....
Some of the best Ni-MH AA batteries are around 2.4 amp-hours; if a D was twice that, say 5 amp-hours, and you used 8 of them for ~12V nominal, that would give you 5 amp-hours at 12V. If your laptop used 12V and about 2.5 amps (most supplies would be AT LEAST that), that only gives you two hours of use - with 12 D batteries. I suppose you could do it, but I don't see how it could be practical.
You could also use them for an inverter (12VDC -> 120VAC), but again, you have the whole power consumption issue. Usually when you have to step up to 120VAC from a battery and back down to DC to power something, it would be much more efficient to convert it directly DC to DC (through maybe a switching power supply).
Well, thar; enough to think about?
Oh, that regulator is in stock at Digi-Key for about 8 bucks.
http://www.digikey.com/scripts/DkSearch...l?Detail?Ref=487030&Row=367424&Site=US