Feature Request: Add InitialPosition to CurrentLocationLayer

[WD-J]

Is your feature request related to a problem? Please describe.
The location of a user shouldn't have to be yielded in a stream for the CurrentLocationLayer to initialize.

Describe the solution you'd like
Similar to the initialData field in StreamBuilders, it would be very useful to have an initialPosition parameter available in the CurrentLocationLayer.

I currently use a workaround in which I yield the users location in a stream, on listen. This is a suboptimal pattern, and it would be much cleaner to simply pass initial data to the CurrentLocationLayer.

Describe alternatives you've considered
N/A

Additional context
N/A

[github-actions]

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[tlserver]

Hi @WD-J, can you provide your usecase or example usecases? Thanks

[WD-J]

Hi! A common use case would be: Using the CurrentLocationLayer on a page that the user will enter at a later point.

The sequence of events would look like this, given that the user is not moving:

• User opens app
• Location is fetched
• User opens page that contains the CurrentLocationLayer
• The CurrentLocationLayer waits for location stream to fire
• (A new) Location will not be emitted, as the user is standing still

In this instance, the ideal would be the ability to pass an initial location to the CurrentLocationLayer widget.

[tlserver]

Hello! Thanks for the feature request.

To clarify: are you looking to set the initial location to a static, pre-configured value (e.g., a hardcoded LatLng), or do you want to dynamically fetch the user's current position when the map initializes?

If it's the latter (dynamic fetch on init), the plugin already handles this automatically via the dataStreamFactory. When you use the default position stream (from the geolocator package), it requests the current location upon stream subscription, which happens when the CurrentLocationLayer is built. This means you get an initial position without needing to manually yield it elsewhere in your code.

For reference, here's where that happens:

• In this plugin: data_stream_factory.dart (lines 103-106) – this sets up the stream using geolocator's getLastKnownPosition, getCurrentPosition and getPositionStream.
• In geolocator: geolocator.dart (lines 62-74) – this shows the default standard settings of getCurrentPosition.

If you're aiming for a static pre-configured location instead, could you share more details on your use case?

Let me know if this addresses your concern or if you'd still like to see an initialPosition parameter added!

[WD-J]

I am indeed looking to set the initial location to a static, pre-configured value. Similar to initialData in StreamBuilder.

When you use the default position stream (from the geolocator package). . .

Got it! I use a different location implementation, and so I provide my own position stream. That is then a key part of my use case!
I would, therefore, very much still like to see an initialPosition parameter added.