I just created my OSM account and the map opened to where I grew up. How does OSM know that? asked 08 Feb '22, 16:05  KnackDaddy |
One Answer:
The quick answer is that it doesn't, but it does use cookies to remember where you last looked. Perhaps you'd looked there previously? I don't know whether there is any clever code but for me (UK based) I cleared all cookies (when the About page was open), re-opened the browser, and it showed a map of the whole UK. answered 08 Feb '22, 16:49  EdLoach ♦ |
I think the default location may be based on IP geo-location. In my case, I opened the site in a fresh browser, and it centered on the middle of Canada at zoom 3.
And that "whole UK" is based on geolocation of IP address. If I browse OSM with no cookies from the UK via a German IP address, I get a map centred on Germany.
That makes sense; I likely had a cookie from the last time I used Google Maps on this machine. Thanks.