What is the usage of OrderedDict in Python's collections module?

Can you explain the usage of OrderedDict in Python's collections module?

Sure! OrderedDict is a subclass of the built-in dict class that maintains the order of keys as they are added.

How does it differ from a regular dictionary?

The main difference is that OrderedDict remembers the order in which items were inserted, while regular dictionaries do not guarantee order before Python 3.7.

Can you give me an example of how to use it?

Of course! Here's a simple example:

from collections import OrderedDict

ordered_dict = OrderedDict()
ordered_dict['a'] = 1
ordered_dict['b'] = 2
ordered_dict['c'] = 3

print(ordered_dict)  # Output: OrderedDict([('a', 1), ('b', 2), ('c', 3)])

Are there any performance implications when using OrderedDict?

Yes, OrderedDict can be slightly slower than regular dictionaries due to the overhead of maintaining the order, but the difference is usually negligible.