Rif

Learning the Rif is a good alternative to learning the Daf. Besides analyzing the gemara in a way that extracts halacha from it, the Rif also summarizes the gemara, eliminating much of the back and forth and other material, such that it is much shorter and thus faster to learn. Indeed, daf 4b has the second Mishna in Rif, and 9b in Bavli. The Rambam writes that in his bet midrash very few learned his {the Rambam's} sefer, and one or two learned the gemara, but most learned the Rif.