Apple is taking a leaf out of Google's book and releasing its latest desktop operating system -- OSX Yosemite -- as a public beta, ahead of its official launch this autumn.

It means that from Thursday, potentially any existing Mac owner can download the software to their computer and put it through its paces and in doing so help to shape the finished product.

It also means that, if they also have an iPhone or an iPad, they'll get to try out a host of new continuity and convergence features, such as being able to use their computers to make phone calls and seamlessly switch between devices mid-workflow.

As such, it is potentially the most feature-packed and potentially revolutionary, rather than evolutionary, version of the operating system ever developed and one that is already generating a lot of excitement among the company's loyal customers.

In order to get involved, go to the beta program webpage and sign up. However an Apple ID is required and participation is limited to 1 million participants.

Apple also recommends that the beta version is installed on a secondary rather than primary computer -- in case there are any glitches or inaccuracies in the software.

But whether it's a primary or secondary PC, it will need to have the latest version of OSX mavericks installed in order to accept the download. Once Yosemite is installed, just start using it and every time there's a problem or an issue, simply report it straight back to Apple.