Designer software offers a graphical design tool to create forms that combine high-fidelity presentation with XML data handling. Using Adobe Designer, form authors can quickly create secure, intelligent electronic forms that can be deployed as Adobe PDF or HTML documents.
Authors use an intuitive grid layout and drag-and-drop libraries to position graphics, enter text, and add form objects such as list boxes, drop-down lists, command buttons, and checkboxes. They can then render a single template into multiple formats to suit audience preference, type of data to be captured, or the platform being used.
- Create forms that validate data, perform calculations, and automatically check for errors to increase accuracy.
- Bind form fields to XML schemas, databases, or Web services for creation of more intelligent forms that integrate with core systems and reduce integration costs.
- You can create both static and dynamic forms
I know you can upgrade Adobe LiveCycle ES4 to Experience Manager Forms but are the two tools completely different or can they be integrated in some way?
These are essentially the same product with Experience Manager Form being the latest version of the product that provides you with all native form design capabilities along with the latest one. Forms created in one can be imported/exported in the other easily. Writing JS in designer forms is very simple and along with that you have support for XFA based scripting; below is the reference guide for the same.
https://helpx.adobe.com/pdf/aem-forms/6-2/scripting-basics.pdf
Hope that helps!