The noun 'default' in English means a want or absence of something.
[In default of payment for these goods, we should like them returned as soon as possible.]
to mean: If you are not going to pay for these goods, please return them at once.
From this basal meaning it was a short distance for 'default' to acquire the sense of [if nothing else happens].
[In default of my meeting a better girlfriend before I reach twenty-one, I shall marry Sylvia.]
to mean: If I don't meet anybody better, I shall settle for Sylvia.
This is the sense which 'default' usually takes in Computer Science:
[The default operating system for PC's is Windows Vista - though most are able to run Debian or other Linux clones.]
to mean: PC's run on Windows Vista - unless someone has adapted them to run a different operating system.
[The default bootfiles for this system are to be found on the hard disk, but boot can be redirected at the startup prompt to reference the CD device.]
to mean: This computer will boot from its hard disk, unless someone tells it different.
---- I do not know of any case in Computer Science where 'default' takes the meaning 'different'.