I wish the default view of my document library to show web parts. That is easy enough. However I don't know where or how to set the layout of the parts. I want my page to have a right column and a central column.

SharePoint 2007

You can do the following:

1. Create a new view and set it as the default
2. Open your site using SharePoint Designer 2007 (free download from MS)
3. Navigate to your library / forms / yourviewname.aspx and open it in edit mode
4. Look at the code and locate the WebPartZone that is present on the page
5. Create additional Web Part Zones as needed (they can live in tables or divs to allow multiple columns)

Thanks. Unfortunately due to IT policy in workplace I do not have access to SharePoint designer and they wont install it. 

Is there any other way? All I need is the layout to match my home page master - which uses the web parts template: right column, header, footer, top row, 3 columns