In this context, what does 'verified' imply? He opened a new tab, checked whether or not it was connected to the network (and found that it was). He opened a new tab, checked whether or not it was connected to the network, (but the reader is not yet informed of whether it was or was not). I'm not sure which meaning the reader will take from the sentence and I want to be sure, as it is relevant to this part of the plot.
I would assume the former. If you said "to verify it was still connected" I'd probably assume that it was, but a follow up sentence saying that it wasn't wouldn't make me feel lied to. He opened a new tab and actually did verify it, he didn't only open a new tab intending to verify it.
Thanks @izzybot. Actually the terminal was still connected, so the implied first meaning of the sentence is fine. I could follow up with something like 'This could mean only one thing - it was Devrim who had disconnected.', just in case the reader isn't clear on what has happened.
It explicitly means the first one. Verify means to demonstrate the truth of something, so the original sentence is synonymous with: Arlo opened a new tab on his terminal and made sure it was true that it was still connected to the network.
When it comes to anything to do with computers, you're gonna get three different reactions from three different types of people: those who know nothing of computers (and will be confused no matter what you write), those who think they know computers but actually don't (and they will argue until the cows come home about what it means) and finally, those who actually know computers. This latter group will assume he checked to make sure the terminal was still connected and also assume this same terminal was open before and was connected at that time. They'll also conclude that the terminal wasn't actually closed and therefore couldn't be opened because it had to be running in the background in order for it to be previously connected (and still connected). And finally, they'll realize he's got a pretty nifty terminal programme running that can be both open and closed while still remaining connected and they'll bug the crap out of you in your blog until you tell them the name of it (and it won't be Bash, I can tell you that).
Arlo opened a new tab on his terminal and verified it was still connected to the network. From the phrasing, the use of "it" seems to be referring to the tab not the terminal. Through context, we understand you mean the terminal & I would assume it meant that the computer was connected. However, I think there're better ways of phrasing the sentence to make it clearer. As a side note ... If we're talking about today's modern world, and you mean a tab on web browser (which is the image I'm getting.) Pulling up a new tab would tell you if it connected simply because nothing would load if it wasn't connected. If the only point you're trying to make in the conversation is that Arlo checked to make sure he was still connected then perhaps something like: Arlo pulled up another tab, his homepage came up instantly, verifying he was still connected.
I feel as if the phrasing links "it" to the terminal - the closest matching antecedent. To the OP - I agree with those who say the sentence is fine as-is - "verified" means checking and getting a positive result.
