AaronAdams
I've tended to get around this by adding a query to the URL bar -- seems to trick whatever browser it was that I encountered this behavior on.
One thing is certain when comparing the two - I have a LOT to learn from this project. The inspiration goes both ways.
I have a little snapshot of how it looked back then, at https://aaronos.dev/AaronOS_Old/
Not quite sure that anything could be called a Kernel by any measure, but there's certainly a lot of stuff in there.
Oh, and I apologize in advance for your loss of brain cells. Some of that code is around seven years old.
Aside that, an Electron app has been experimented with, but only the Music Player has actually been released standalone.
Snappiness is definitely lent to the tiny scale of the project compared to Windows -- the entire thing is loaded to RAM! Though that's been changing in more recent updates.
As time passes the "System" part of "OS" is beginning to feel more valid, at the least. 3rd-party app support, interconnected systems, etc.
You're right though, certainly not an actual OS by any measure.